


Beyond The Hunter's Moon

by Starr_Williams



Series: Isle of Stone and Steel [1]
Category: Gargoyles (Cartoon)
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-02-28
Updated: 2021-02-28
Packaged: 2021-03-12 08:21:44
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 25
Words: 63,269
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29756781
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Starr_Williams/pseuds/Starr_Williams
Summary: This is a kind of re-telling of the events of "Hunter's Moon", mostly following Elisa from her point of view, and what happens after.
Relationships: Goliath/Elisa Maza
Series: Isle of Stone and Steel [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2187018
Kudos: 5





	1. Chapter 1

New York City is said to be the city that never sleeps. The Isle of Manhattan was no different. There was never a time when the streets were empty of either cars or people.

The people who made Manhattan their homes were a hearty breed, facing harsh winters, raging summer storms, and the occasional spell from supernatural beings.

Strange things happened at all hours of the day and night. For the most part they go unnoticed by the bustling crowds. It's not that people were ignorant of the odd developments… But, let's face it, humans tend to believe that they are the top of the food chain. They think trouble will come at them head on, and rarely think to look up at what may be just over their heads.

Which is how the Manhattan Clan of Gargoyles had remained hidden for so long.

For years, the ancient clan of gargoyles had come alive when the last rays of sun faded from the sky and into memory. They had taken it upon themselves to make Manhattan safer for those who lived on the island, expecting no thanks in return.

Not that they ever really got one, anyway. Most of the time, the people that they helped ran in fear of the "monsters".

There were only a small handful of people who knew of the Gargoyles' existence, and knew them well enough to know that they would lay their lives on the line to save an innocent. It was that handful of people that kept them going.

One human in particular.

Elisa Maza, the raven-haired detective with the NYPD at the 23rd precinct station house.

She had been the first human to truly befriend the clan when they woke one thousand years from when they had been placed under a magic spell. She had helped them pick names for themselves, and to find a new home within the clocktower over her station house when their castle had become too dangerous for them to stay. It was Elisa who had encouraged them to use their protective instincts to help the people of Manhattan, all the while watching over them and keeping their existence a secret. She helped them find their place in this time, and they were grateful for her friendship.

Her close relationship with the clan had lasted through events that most humans could not even conceive of. In return, they helped her on her patrols at night, ensuring the safety of the city as well as her own.

The bond between Elisa and Goliath, the leader of the Gargoyle clan, was almost instantaneous.

...Almost.

The truth was, it took Elisa's falling off of the top of the Aerie building and Goliath saving her to start the process.

Upon their awakening in this strange place and time, Goliath had a mistrust of humans, but something about Elisa had struck him as being truly unique. He had questioned the closeness for a brief time, but it was quickly overcome after she had put herself in danger to keep him safe within only 24 hours of meeting him.

Goliath had been caught, far from the castle in Central Park, when sunrise turned him to stone for the day. Elisa had led their attackers away, and proceeded to keep watch over him all day.

She was human, that was true enough… But she had the fighting spirit and protective instincts that was so much a part of a Gargoyle's nature.

Only a few months ago, Goliath, Elisa and Bronx had disappeared for 6 months when they were caught in a skiff under the direction of Avalon. The mystical island had directed them to where it decided that they needed to be… not necessarily where they  _ wanted _ to be. They had tried for months to return to Manhattan, but had been magically re-directed to other places and countries. Most of their time had been dealing with the Fae and Oberon's Children, the "third race" that had previously been the cause of trouble for the clan in New York.

It had turned out that "big daddy" Oberon had been in the process of calling his children back home to Avalon, and most of his wayward children did not want to go.

Goliath and Elisa had found the clan's children, the eggs that had been unhatched at the time that the clan had been frozen in stone, had hatched and been raised on the island of Avalon by a small group of humans. All were grown, and had no interest in leaving the only home that they had known.

All but one.

Angela was the child of Goliath and his mate at the time, Demona. Once she had figured out that Goliath was one of her natural parents, she had been only too eager to leave the island. Having been raised with more human traditions than Gargoyle, she was determined to have a father/daughter relationship with Goliath.

Elisa had her job cut out for her on that one. Gargoyle clans raised their children together, not acknowledging individual parentage. Angela, being raised by humans, had not understood why Goliath had been so resistant to call or even treat her as his daughter. Finally, however, a parent/child bond had been formed and was fully in place.

Together, the four of them had grown closer, as they only had each other for that time. Elisa watched over them during the day while they slept encased in their stone skin. The gargoyles watched over her at night while they struggled to find their way home.

Now that they were all together with the clan again, patrolling the city and protecting one another became something of a routine.

As the sun set on this particular night, the clan came alive with a roar. Shedding their stone skin, they moved inside of the clock tower that had become their home. To avoid any unnecessary confusion, such as what had happened the  _ last _ time that she had gone undercover, Elisa had started leaving the clan notes if she couldn't be there to meet with them personally.

Tonight , Elisa had left them a note, letting them know that she would be on an assignment, and where she would be.

Hudson, the clan elder, opted to stay and guard the clocktower with Bronx.

The rest walked outside, spread their wings, and began soaring with the aid of the wind currents.

If Elisa thought it was important enough to leave them a note about what she was doing, they wanted to be there in case she should need help.

Elisa Maza had been in her share of trouble. More than most, actually, if she were honest. She would have to admit that the fact that she hadn't been fired yet was nothing short of a miracle. The only thing that was saving her, was the fact that she was damn good at her job.

That, and with the help from the Gargoyles, she had one of the highest arrest records in the NYPD.

It was sometimes hard for her to believe that her life had changed so much in the last few years. It all started the night when she had been trying to find out what was causing the destruction and loud explosions at the Aerie building, the home of Xanatos Enterprises and her biggest pain in the ass David Xanatos himself.

There was a rather large amount of crime in Manhattan, most of which could be traced back to a select few people of various criminal activity. David Xanatos, billionaire extraordinaire, was one of them. When the chance to scout out the building arose, she took it.

He had an inflated ego, and was as slick as a used car salesman, that was for sure. Hell, he had bought Castle Wyvern, a deserted castle in Scotland and had it transported to Manhattan. Stone by stone, he had it moved and rebuilt on top of his already massive company building in the heart of the city. It had been an exercise in excess, or so Elisa had thought, meant as a slap in the face to anyone not rolling in the dough.

Little had she known at the time, Xanatos' reason for moving the castle was to break an ancient spell that had been placed on the castle's previous inhabitants. The Gargoyles that had decorated the parapets were more than mere decorations, and Xanatos had a plan to use them for his own purposes.

It was there that she met Goliath and his clan of Gargoyles.

They had taken her by surprise, and had caused her to misstep and fall off of the top of the Aerie building. Goliath had caught her, helping her back up to safety.

They were ancient guardians, and took their jobs seriously. They had taken it upon themselves to protect their castle and the city that it now resided in.

Goliath was the leader, as well as the largest of them all. He was frightening looking, especially when his anger caused his eyes to glow a phosphorescent white, but he was as gentle as could be to those he was close to. Standing a towering 7 feet tall, even taller when he chose to extend his wings upward, and very muscular, he was built very much like the biblical character he was named after. Elisa imagined that running into him would be like hitting a brick wall.

Hudson, named after the river, was the eldest, sporting a head of snow white hair and a beard to match. As the former head of the clan, he tended to veg out in front of a television whenever he had the chance, but he never evaded a good fight either. He was the main caretaker of Bronx, the large dog-like gargoyle.

Broadway, Lexington and Brooklyn were the youngest of the clan. They were definitely in their teenage years as far as Elisa could see. They were curious about this new time, and tended to get themselves into one scrape after another.

Lexington was the smallest. The olive green, web-winged youngster had flourished in this new time, using his natural curiosity and amazing talent to work with electronic and mechanical gadgets to work. Elisa couldn't believe how many times he had helped her with her toaster, microwave, and even her blender. He could simply read up on it on the internet, and figure out how to repair almost anything.

Her blender had been "tweaked" so much, it could probably pulverize concrete now.

Broadway was the large teal colored gargoyle, who enjoyed anything to do with food. He loved to cook, and loved to play around in Elisa's kitchen on their slower nights. Elisa had gotten used to coming home to savory scents and on the nights she worked especially late, a plastic wrapped plate of leftovers for dinner before bed.

Recently, he had gotten on a dessert kick that had Elisa fearing for her waistline.

Brooklyn was red skinned with a beak-shaped nose and a scathing sense of humor. His humorous comebacks came so fast, that sometimes those around him didn't catch them right away. He was fun to be around, though, and reminded Elisa a lot of her brother when he'd been younger.

Of the three younger gargoyles, Brooklyn seemed to be the most easygoing. There were times however, he seemed to be the most like a moody teenager than his brothers. He had a trusting nature that bit him on the butt a few times, and that resulted in some pretty gnarly anger issues that he was still working on. He was fiercely loyal to his family and friends, but second chances were rare with him once that trust was turned against him.

Elisa had had her doubts when Goliath had named Brooklyn as his successor for the clan at first, but when the time came for Brook to step up, he had done so… however reluctantly.

Brooklyn had matured a great bit.

Goliath and Elisa had been gone for months, and Brooklyn had taken on the responsibilities of a leader in their absence.

It was during that time that Goliath and Elisa had found Angela. Angela was the daughter of Goliath and his former mate, Demona, but had been raised on the isle of Avalon by humans. There were quite a few young gargoyles being raised there, but only Angela had wanted to leave.

Standing a little taller than Elisa, Angela shared the lavender skin tone and black hair as her father. She also had the look of her mother, which had admittedly thrown Elisa for a loop.

After getting to know her, Elisa stopped seeing Demona's resemblance and now only saw Angela. More than once, Elisa was grateful that Angela had been raised by humans. Angela was more accepting of them, and was prepared to defend them against her mother's plots and plans.

Once in Manhattan, Angela's presence had caused a stir, that was for sure. The Trio (Broadway, Brooklyn and Lexington) had fallen for her, hard. It had been rather adorable, the way they had tripped over each other to get her attention… Or at least, Elisa had thought so.

And then there was Demona. She was STILL a red-headed pain in the ass. Demona had been the cause of the clan's destruction in Scotland, but had blamed all of the human race for it instead. She always seemed to have some sort of half-baked plan in the works.

Finally, there was Elisa. She had an exotic look because of her mixed African-American and Hopi Indian heritage, and standing a whopping 5' 4" tall, she'd had her work cut out for her to make it as far as she did in the department. More than one of her male counterparts had fancied themselves in "love" with her, and set themselves up as a "protector" for her against the big, bad world, but it didn't take long for them to realize that this small female could handle her own. Prior to her entering the force, following in her father's footsteps, she had taken courses in self defense and martial arts. She had completed her time as a beat cop, but sought out a position as a detective with a tenacity that left many shaking their heads. Luckily, she had proven to be very good at her job, passed the detective training and achieved her goal in a nearly record-setting time.

Once the clan had discovered that Elisa was a detective, a city protector herself, they considered her a friend and ally in this foreign place and time. The Gargoyles ran patrols around the city, careful not to be caught and helping to keep the streets safe. Elisa had brought in her fair share of criminals that had been left behind, restrained by the gargoyles.

More than one criminal had peed their pants… or worse… at the sight of the Gargoyles.

Luckily, they were on the side of the good guys.

Yes, they were indeed good friends, practically family now in a way. They spent time in her apartment, raided her fridge, took care of her cat… took care of her. In return, she helped to keep them safe. Kept their daytime location a secret.

It led to some interesting challenges, however. She had to get creative with her excuses on how she kept coming up with so many criminals, all of whom seemed to babble about "the monsters" that caught them.

She'd had to replace a good number of handguns, as they kept getting crushed, lost or stolen. She had even managed to be shot with her own weapon once because of Broadway's fascination with Western movies and her carelessness leaving it out.

It was the shooting incident, and Elisa's lack of details as to what had actually happened that night, that had caused the Chief to assign her a partner for her own safety.

Matt Bluestone had originally come across as a complete weirdo. Previously with the FBI, Matt had an ongoing obsession with the secret society of the Illuminati… among other things.

She had even introduced her partner, Matt Bluestone, to the clan so that he could help them out. It had taken her a while to be able to introduce them, to share her secret and friends with someone else, but they seemed to get along great.

She had had to come up with some damned good, borderline epic reasons as to some of the wild things that happened when she and the Gargoyles were together. She couldn't just walk up to her boss, Captain Maria Chavez, and tell her what had actually happened. Between the Gargoyles, the Phoenix Gate madness, mythological creatures and characters straight out of Shakespeare, Elisa was sure she would have ended up in a padded room, complete with a straightjacket and hourly injections of some rather potent designer, antipsychotic drugs.

Some of the Captain's willingness to work with Elisa's crazy life was probably due to her closeness with Elisa's father. One time partners, Peter Maza and Maria Chavez had grown close as friends and Maria had been named as a Godmother to the Maza kids.

As a result of all the help, leeway, and understanding that she had gotten from Captain Chavez, Elisa had developed the inability to tell her boss no.

Which is why she was currently dressed in an absurd outfit with a crazy platinum blonde wig on. The gargoyle clan had intervened at the perfect time, however, and after popping the top of the train car open like a soda can, they had subdued the would-be muggers. They were gone before the train had reached the next station where a few police officers had been waiting.

Matt was there, waiting for her as well. "Had a little help on this one, I see."

Elisa fought the urge to roll her eyes. Matt knew very well who had helped her. They had all been there, helping in one way or another. She still was not sure who, but someone had been hurt when things went south on the train. She wanted to get back to the station quickly, so that she could sneak up her familiar route to the clock tower where the clan spent their days and check on them.

And, if she were honest with herself, so that she could spend as much time as she could with Goliath. They had been close, seemingly from the moment that they met. The Avalon tour hadn't hurt their bond, either, having spent  **_months_ ** together. They had found themselves doing everything from fighting Oberon and his children to struggling to find their way back home, from nearly freezing to death in Norway to fighting ancient Gods.

There were times when she forgot their differences, and felt like something was developing between them even stronger than friendship... But one or the other of them would always pull back.

A romantic relationship was out of the question, she knew that, but couldn't help wishing that things could be different. She had seen too many romantic relationships fall apart and destroy any previous friendship that may have existed before. She couldn't risk losing Goliath and the clan.

Sometimes, just sometimes, she even felt like Goliath might want the same thing, feel the same way.

Just tonight for example, on the train when the excitement was over, she had given Goliath a hug. He had started to hug her back, hesitated, then pulled away. He couldn't seem to get away fast enough, and that stung a little.

Elisa gave herself a small shake. She had to get it together, now was not the time to be daydreaming.

Matt seemed to sense that her mind was elsewhere, and helped cover by tossing her a small duffle bag. "Go change. I do not want to have to ride back to the station with you. Smelling the way you do right now and probably complaining the whole way."

Elisa's shoulder twinged as she reached to catch the small bag. Damn, she had forgotten about ramming into the guy with the gun on the train. It didn't  _ feel  _ like it was out of place or anything serious, but it definitely felt like she had run into something solid.

Sure, she could have handled him better, but he had been aiming his gun at Goliath. She hadn't had time for finesse or thought. She had simply reacted.

With the would be muggers handcuffed and safely in custody, Elisa used the train station's ladies room to change into the more comfortable clothing. After hours of riding the trains from station to station, waiting on this group of thugs to make an appearance, she felt gritty. Her skin felt like she was wearing a film of dirt and who knew what else, and everything else held the distinct scent of diesel fumes from the trains. She let out a grateful sigh when she was finally able to get out of those damnable heels, even took the time to wash off the makeup and run a brush through her hair. When she emerged, she felt more comfortable and more... herself.

Once she was in her usual comfortable jeans, black tee and red bomber jacket, she felt almost human. The only thing she could ask for… What she would gladly beg for at this point… was a hot shower.

Elisa almost groaned at the thought. Oh, yes, a nice hot shower would be heaven right now.

She didn't mind going undercover, but the wigs and the odd clothing made for an uncomfortable night. And the high heels. Dear God, when she thought about those high heels her feet began hurting all over again.

She really wanted to have five minutes alone with the sadist who created high heels.

She strolled back through the station, eavesdropping on the frantic passenger reports of the "Monsters" and how they might come back.

Elisa shook her head, and began to make her way to the parking lot. If only people know how much good the Gargoyles were doing...

Matt was waiting in the parking lot beside Elisa's beloved red sports car, tossing the keys into the air and catching them. "This is a sweet little car," Matt said with a grin. "Drives like a dream."

"Matt, stop drooling. You will mess up the upholstery," Elisa said with a laugh. "This was a one-time thing today. Nobody drives my baby but me."

Matt pouted like a little boy, tossing the keys though the air to Elisa.

Elisa laughed. "Those puppy dog eyes have lost their effectiveness."

"You say that as if it ever worked on you," Matt groused.

"Oh, I know." Elisa shot back. "You are so abused." She laughed as Matt threw her a disgruntled look. "If you don't complain too much, I'll let you work the light and siren."

Matt rolled his eyes and walked around to the passenger side.

She reached for the door handle, her shoulder reminding her once again that it didn't like her very much at the moment.


	2. Chapter 2

Matt caught the involuntary flinch and was immediately concerned. They were partners, as close as family members. And family watched out for each other, whether they wanted to or not.

"Hey," he said softly, so he would not be overheard by the other police officers. "You o.k.?"

"Yeah," Elisa said, sliding in to the car. "I just took a knock to the shoulder."

Matt frowned. What had happened? The gargoyles had been there with her, and he knew they would do anything for Elisa. More than once, they had put themselves in danger in order to protect her from harm. If they  _ had _ known that she'd been hurt, no matter how little, they would not have left her alone.

He had seen them hanging around, more than once, watching over her on such occasions.

Then again, knowing Elisa, she probably had not even told them that she was hurt in any way.

"Do you need to go see the doc?" He asked.

"No," Elisa said firmly. "The really big guy with the mohawk is a little more solid than he looks. He had his gun out and was waving it around. He turned it on Goliath, and the only thing I had time to do was to knock him off balance. I rammed his gun arm with my shoulder and we both hit the ground."

' _ Well, that explained things a bit _ ,' Matt thought. Matt had seen Goliath and Elisa together, and had felt the tension between them. Just as he knew that Goliath would throw himself in front of a bullet for Elisa, she would do the same for him. If things were different… if he were human or she a gargoyle… then they would be the kind of couple that sonnets had been written about. As things were now, their relationship was a little more on the romance side of friendly between them.

If being together made them happy, he was all for it.

"Well, if you are sure…" Matt left the rest unsaid.

"I am," Elisa said. "We have to get back to the station and get these sleazeballs processed. I think one of the clan might be hurt, and I want to check up on them as soon as possible."

With that, she started the car and maneuvered into the Manhattan traffic.

Elisa hated paperwork with a passion.

With any undercover operation, there was a small mountain of paperwork to be filled out, checked over and re-written. The smallest mistake or blank field could result in mistrial or release of criminals back out onto the streets.

She had the sneaking suspicion that the captain sent her on these undercover operations  _ because _ of all the paperwork to be completed.

At least she wasn't taking the witness statements tonight. From the little that she had heard, the people on the train were more concerned with the Gargoyles than the guys waving guns around. She was not sure that she had it in her to hold her tongue tonight.

Elisa went through her paperwork at top speed tonight, though. As the undercover officer in the operation tonight, she had the most intensive paperwork of all. It was thorough and detailed… minus details about the gargoyles, of course... it was going to take forever, and she had less patience than normal with it.

She had other things to do, first and foremost she had to go and check up on the clan.

She startled when a large styrofoam cup appeared in front of her face.

"Here you go," Matt said. "Why don't you take this, and go for a walk to clear your head. You have most of this done already, and I can finish up."

Elisa took the cup and took a deep drink. "Ugh," she said as the thick, bitter liquid passed over her tastebuds. "Who made this coffee?"

"Marcus," Matt said apologetically. "I didn't ask before pouring two cups."

"Well, if there is any left at the end of the night, we can use the remainder to fill that pothole in the parking lot." Elisa quipped.

"At the very least, we could patch some flat tires with it."

"That is about right," Elisa said. She sat the cup down before rising to her feet. "Are you sure that you have got this?"

"I do have one condition," he said.

Elisa sighed. "What?"

"After checking on them," he didn't feel the need to specify  _ who _ he was talking about, "You make a stop at the Doc's office."

"Doc" was the affectionate name that the officers had given to Dr. Stephen Jackson, the coordinator for Emergency Medical Services and First Responder Training for the precinct. He had originally been in a small, cramped office over one of the firehouses in Manhattan, but with the sudden influx of new recruits at the fire department, he had been temporarily moved to an old file storage office that had been sitting empty on the second floor of the police station. The office was easily double the size of his old one, and rumor had it that he had threatened to quit if he had to go back to his original space. His services came in handy with any and all small injuries on the job.

His old, tiny office back at the firehouse had been freed up to use as it's original purpose. A storage closet.

Elisa groaned. She  _ hated _ going to a doctor, for any reason, but if it got her out of going blind on paperwork…

"Fine," she said.

Matt picked up a pen, and snatched the papers from her desk. "In that case, I have it all under control here. If I have any questions, I know where to find you. Go make sure that they are all right. You won't be able to function if you are still worried about them."

"Thanks Matt," Elisa said. She picked up the coffee and nonchalantly started the trek to the clock tower.

She still felt gross and smelled like train station fumes. As she made her way through the winding hallways of the station, she promised herself a trip to the women's locker room for a long shower before going home for the night.

Up nine flights of stairs, and past the locker rooms, and past the small workout room. As far as Elisa was concerned, this room only existed for those hard core rookies who thought that working a full 10 or 12 hour shift just was not enough of a workout.

Elisa shook her head at the thought. She worked out on her own so that she could stay in shape, but anyone either coming on or coming off of a full or overtime shift and working out with  _ actual _ gym equipment was painful to think about.

Ugh.

Luckily for her, the hallway leading up to the clocktower was small and out of the way. The only thing that hallway was used for was a janitor's closet. Inside the closet, there was a ceiling hatch with a fold-down ladder that led to the tower. Unless the clock broke down, there was no reason for anyone to use the small access ladder. Looking both ways to make sure no one was around, she walked to the door and slipped through.

The clock tower was built sometime in the 1800's, when stone buildings were the standard. The rest of the police station had been rebuilt, remodeled and expanded as the time passed, but the tower was left alone. It was now something of a landmark, and people would be all kinds of upset if there was even a hint that the tower would be messed with.

The stones showed their age, but they were aging well. The Gargoyles had cleaned it up considerably, and were responsible for the current condition. Lexington was the electronics whiz, and had taken over the clock works so that there would be no need of a repair call. Angela had really put a girl touch to the place, with the clean floors and small homey touches. Broadway was the resident chef, and had even found an old electric stove to haul up to the tower to cook on. Brooklyn had taken it upon himself to hunt down and haul up an old television for Hudson. Elisa had done her best to make the place comfortable for them before they moved here from the castle, but they clan had truly made it their home.

Elisa moved up the stairs, and only then did she notice that it was noticeably lighter than normal up there. Damn it, the sun was already coming up, and she had failed to watch the clock. Well, at least she could look in on them.

They were all out for the day, in their normal fierce poses. After a quick head count, she felt relief to see that they were all there. Whoever may have been hurt was well enough to get back home, and that is all that mattered.

With a weary sigh, Elisa turned and started the much despised journey to the Doc's office. Walking down the second floor hallway, she began rotating her shoulder. It was stiff and a little sore, but it didn't feel like anything serious. She briefly thought about skipping the Doc's office, but the thought of Matt hounding her was almost worse than anything Doc could do to her.

Almost...

Doc's door was already open, so Elisa knocked on the doorframe before walking in.

Doc was somewhere in his mid-forties, salt and pepper hair, and one of those kindly, country doctor demeanors. He was a nice guy, with an almost unshakable calm in the most hectic emergencies. Because of the nature of his job, he basically lived at the station. He already had two failed marriages under his belt, and loudly said that it was enough for him. During high emergency times, he used to bunk with the firemen at the firehouse, but now that he was at the police station he had a nice plush couch to catch some Z's on.

"Sheesh, Doc," Elisa said. "When was the last time you actually went home?"

Doc grinned and ran a hand through his disheveled hair. "Long enough that I'm sure my plants will have died again."

Elisa shook her head at him.

He closed the file that he had been looking at and folded his hands on top of it. "Matt already came by to say he was sending you up."

"I'm sure that he did," Elisa said. "Really Doc, I'm fine."

"Why don't you let me take a look, just to make sure." Doc got to his feet, closed the office door and motioned Elisa over to the small exam table in the corner.

With a disgusted sigh, she hopped up to sit on the edge.

"Want a lollipop?" Doc asked with a straight face, holding up the small treat as if she were a child.

"Smart ass," Elisa shot back. She took the sucker though.

He laughed. "You know, you are one of my favorites here."

"I bet you say that to all the ladies," Elisa said, batting her eyes playfully.

"You bet," He said. "Rate your pain from one to ten, ten being the worst."

He put her through a range of motion tests, reaching, stretching and finally lifting motions.

"Everything looks fine." Doc said. "No dislocation, only some slight bruising. From what you told me, that's probably from making contact with the floor." He reached into his desk drawer, pulling out a familiar white bottle. "Here," he said, tossing it to Elisa.

She caught it with her good arm. "Take two and call you in the morning?"

He laughed. "Just take two as soon as you get something to eat so it won't irritate your stomach. For the next few days, you can take any over-the-counter anti-inflammatories every four hours, and you will be fine."

Elisa shook out two of the tablets and tossed the bottle back to the doctor. "Thanks."

"Now get out of here," He said with a shooing motion. "I have two training courses to arrange for some of the new recruits."

"Good luck with that," Elisa said, turning to leave.

"You know, detective," Doc said, hesitantly, "You are in here quite often. You can talk to me, you know."

Elisa turned to study the doctor. "I know, Doc. I really am ok, just a hazard of the job."

The doctor nodded, but didn't seem convinced. He let it go, though, and Elisa made her escape.

Her shift was almost over, and she was looking forward to some down time.

"What did the Doc say?" Matt said.

"All clear," Elisa said, showing him the Ibuprofen tablets in her hand. "I just need to grab something to wash these down with, and I am good to go."

Matt reached into his desk drawer, and retrieved a small bottle of water and a snack sized bag of pretzels. "Here, these will help."

"Thanks," Elisa said, taking the items from him. She gratefully sank into her desk chair, took the pills and tore into the snack.

"When you finish with that, Captain Chavez wants to see us in her office."

Elisa gave a coughing choke. "Matt, don't just spring something like that on me."

"Sorry," Matt said, smiling.

"Sure you are," Elisa said grumpily, popping two more of the bite-sized pretzels. "I have been a good girl lately. I haven't disappeared, no crazy driving, not even a parking ticket. What does she want to talk to us about?"

Matt shrugged. "She didn't sound angry, so who knows."

Elisa sighed, and her appetite left. She put down the half empty bag of salty goodness. "Let's get this over with."


	3. Chapter 3

"Maza, I'm reassigning you to the day shift for a while. I need you to show a new transfer the ropes." Captain Maria Chavez said. She knew this would not go over well, as Elisa was very firm on her remaining on overnight shifts.

She was not disappointed.

"Day shift?" Elisa spat out. Even the words left a bitter taste in her mouth.

"Aw, Come on captain!" Matt burst out.

"You are breaking up a great team," Elisa argued. "Better than you know."

"It's only temporary," Maria assured her, but added, "And it is  _ not _ a request."

Elisa jumped to her feet. "Well, I just want it on the record that I'm…"

The captain opened her office door to reveal the new transfer, and Elisa stopped protesting in surprise. Instead of the young recruit that she had been expecting, there was a Man about her age. Her "new but temporary partner" was built. Broad shouldered, with thick brown hair, and the most gorgeous blue eyes Elisa had seen.

She held out her hand and introduced herself. "Hi. Elisa Maza."

"Detective Jason Conover," He said, shaking her hand. "Um, nice to meet you."

Matt shook his head. " _ Oh, boy _ …" he thought. What was it about those tall, dark types with blue eyes that made all women, even his tough as nails partner, go all girly?

"So, when do we start?" Jason asked.

"I…" Elisa looked at the captain. "That is a good question." She narrowed her eyes at the captain.

Maria smiled. "Just a few hours this morning, and then full shifts over the next few days."

Elisa groaned. She just got done working a full shift on her own, and hadn't even had a chance to take a shower yet.

As if reading her mind, Maria suggested that Elisa take the time to clean up, and meet up with Jason in half an hour to start looking into some of the recent break-ins at the waterside warehouses.

Elisa hurried to the locker room for a shower, and at least get the exhaust smell from the trains out of her hair.

Thirty minutes later, she was at her desk, waiting for Jason.

He met her there, holding two large cups of coffee.

She smiled. It was really thoughtful, but…

"Who made it?" She asked, motioning to the coffee.

"Uh," He said, "Someone named Detective Marcus."

"First rule," Elisa said, carefully taking both cups from his hands. "Never drink Marcus' coffee. It is barely liquid, sometimes you can actually feel the coffee grounds in it."

"That would explain the urge I had to chew before I swallowed. I added creamer to mine, but was afraid to add sugar or anything else solid to it." Jason said, smiling.

"Come on," Elisa said, grabbing her keys. "Let's go get some real coffee. My treat."

Fifteen minutes and a quick trip to Starbucks later, they were on their way.

"What a day," Elisa groaned. Her "short shift" with the new guy had turned into an all day event.

While they had been doing a drive through of the warehouses along the docks, they had been in time to catch a robbery in the act. There had been a gunfire exchange, a little off the road driving in her cherished car, and an emergency trip to her mechanic.

Her auto mechanic was going to love her. Tail light shot out, nicks and gouges in the paint, denting from where the bullets had hit the car, various plant life jammed in her grill and a realignment. The shop she frequented was used to her coming in, and kept a large number of parts in stock just for her. Being that she was a police officer, they also knew that she couldn't be without her car, and so they had her on a permanent rush status.

The paint damage and dents would have to stay where they were for the time being, but they assured her that the next time she could bring the car in for repairs when she had a day or two off, they would take care of the damage. For now, it would have to stay overnight for the tail light to be replaced, the realignment completed and the vegetation had been safely removed. They also wanted to give her a tune up, and run a few safety tests to make sure that there were no hidden damages that needed attention.

It was going to cost her a pretty penny, but they had caught their guys.

Jason had offered to help her with the cost, as he felt he was partially responsible for the firefight. Elisa turned him down, as she already had a deep discount with the repair shop.

She had helped them once, when they had been being robbed on a regular basis. When she had caught the guys responsible for it, a couple of newer employees that had been pretty sneaky in getting around the owner, Elisa had been able to return the stolen funds. As a result, the shop's owner promised that they would only charge her for the parts for the rest of her life.

They were as good as their word, and Elisa had never been charged an hourly rate for the repairs. She didn't feel right about it, and so she tipped the mechanics for their work to make up for the hourly wage that they may be missing out on. And she tipped  _ well _ .

They had hitched a ride back to the station with a fellow officer, and Jason had left for the day as soon as the blasted paperwork and reports had been made.

Jason had offered Elisa a ride home, but she made an excuse to hang out at the station for a while. There was still a few hours before sunset when she finally talked him into leaving, and Elisa was worried about getting up to the tower before the Gargoyles woke.

She hurried to the clocktower, and curled up in Hudson's recliner. She needed a power nap before anything else happened. Two shifts in a row, and another shift starting in about ten hours. Now that the adrenaline was wearing off, she felt like she had been hit by a Mac Truck.

Her internal clock, set to the same time after so long on night shifts and gargoyle awakenings, alerted her to the sun setting. She woke, stretched and walked toward the balcony where the Gargoyles had roosted for their days rest.

As the sun's last rays left the sky, she walked up to the railing behind Goliath's massive form. The sound of stone cracking met her ears seconds before the gargoyles woke. The stretched, flexed and roared to life in a display that still made Elisa stand in awe.

"I'll never get tired of that," she said. She noticed that Brooklyn was unwinding a bandage from his arm, even though no sign of an injury was left behind. "Good as new, I see."

"Yup," he responded, dusting the last fragments of his stone covering away. "We call it the concrete cure all." He hopped down from the ledge. "What's up?"

"Well," Elisa started, excited now to tell them of the day's events. "My  _ new _ partner and I had some excitement."

"New partner?" Broadway asked, confused. "Where's Matt?"

"Come inside, and I'll tell you about it." Elisa said.

Once inside, she sat on the stairs so that she could talk to them as close to eye to eye as possible. Elisa had learned long ago, that if she were talking to the gargoyles from her height on the ground, she ended up with neck cramps from looking up into their faces.

She gave them a brief run through of the events of her double shift, leaving out the part where she'd been shot at. She didn't need them to worry about her working days when they couldn't protect her.

"You seem quite impressed with your new partner," Goliath said.

"Well," Elisa found herself stammering a little, "he's a good cop, that's all. And it's temporary."

"Of course," Goliath said with a frown.

"Ugh, these double shifts," Elisa said, rising to her feet. Unconsciously, she rotated her sore shoulder to work out the kinks. "I've got to get some sleep, but I'm a little worried that whoever planned this heist might try again tonight."

"Don't worry Elisa," Broadway hurried to reassure her. "We'll keep an eye on your stuff."

"Thank you," Elisa said, gratefully. She relayed the information that she had on the location of the particular chemical that the thieves had been after.

After gaining their assurances, and knowing that the city was in good hands, she left to go home. One long taxi ride and another shower later, and she curled up in her own bed, her cat purring next to her hip.

Her dreams that night were a confusion of images. Goliath and Jason warred in her mind for who got the most attention. One minute she was talking to Goliath, the next Jason and her were riding in her car. Then she was walking along the parapets of Castle Wyvern with Jason, and suddenly she was falling and Goliath caught her. He held her closely, and his rumbling voice echoed in her ears, "I will always be there to catch you."

Then he kissed her.

When her alarm went off, she actually felt  _ more _ tired than when she had gone to sleep.

Stumbling, she got to her feet and went through her routines on auto pilot, her dreams still weighing heavily on her.

Sure, she had feelings for Goliath, and she was sure that he had feelings for her as well. There had been an almost instant connection between the two of them since they had met… but an actual relationship with him would be impossible.

Wouldn't it?

To be honest, if to no one else but herself, she was not sure anymore. It was getting harder and harder for her to hide her feelings.

And what of Jason? She had just met him, for Gods sakes. Why was  _ he _ invading her dreams? Sure, he was handsome, and she could at least admit that much to herself, but there were a lot of handsome men.

Maybe, in some way, he reminded her of Goliath. A  _ human _ Goliath.

She had seen him in human form once before, when Demona had been foolish enough to employ Puck to get rid of the humans… To get rid of Elisa, in particular. Through a series of missteps and poorly chosen wishes, the Gargoyles had been turned human, and the humans turned into Gargoyles. They had spent some time together while both had been in Gargoyle form, and a brief time while both were in human form.

She had secretly wished for more time while they had both been in the same form, but it was not to be.

Elisa mentally shook herself. Silly dreams and wishes were for little girls, not responsible adults with a job to do.

Picking up her telephone from it's resting place, she called a taxi service to come and take her to the Station. She was a few hours early, but hoped that people just wrote her early arrival off as a side effect of her schedule change. It was still an hour before sunrise, and then she could go and get her car from the shop.

She entered the station to find chaos. Some idiot was flying their "airship" too low all night, causing mass panic, an unbelievable number of UFO calls, and even noise complaints.

Surprisingly, Matt was just coming in the doors himself. Elisa stopped to talk to him and get caught up on the events of last night.

"I stopped to talk to our friend, Xanatos," he told her, walking over to his desk. He sat and leaned back in his chair. "Get this; The chemical that those thieves you guys caught were trying to get? Its a disinfectant."

"What?" Elisa said, surprised. "What can you make with a disinfectant? Not a bomb, I hope."

"Xanatos said no." Matt stood, and stretched. "The lab boys said that, at most, it could be used at a fire starter. It burns away too quickly to do much destruction in small doses, but large amounts, it could  _ possibly _ burn long enough to cause some damage."

"Weird," Elisa agreed. "Well, I am going to try to catch up with the clan for a few minutes before I have to join the day walkers around here."

"You look tired," he said.

"Thank you, captain obvious," Elisa said, smiling. "I really hate day shifts. The good stuff happens at night."

"Yeah, right," Matt said. "Come down when you are done up there. I'll snag you some breakfast pastries from the break room."

Elisa raised an eyebrow. "Breakfast  _ pastries _ ? Sounds like a fancy way of saying 'doughnuts'."

Matt shrugged. "It sounded classier and less cliche the way I said it."

Elisa laughed. She had needed something lighthearted after her dreams had tied her mind… and heart… into knots.

It was as if fate, the fickle bitch, couldn't allow Elisa that. She was halfway down the main hallway on the ground floor when Matt's voice reached her.

"Hey, Elisa," Matt shouted, running toward her.

Frowning, concerned by the look in his eyes, Elisa stopped to wait for him to catch up to her. "What's up?"

"Did you tell the clan to watch over those two warehouses last night?" He asked quietly.

"Yeah." Elisa confirmed. "What's wrong? Are they o.k.?"

"I don't know," Matt admitted, "but both warehouses were hit last night. I haven't been back in the station long, so I just heard about it. One place had its security door ripped off,  _ completely off _ , the building. There was a fire, shots reported and a couple of cars damaged."

Elisa had a bad feeling in the pit of her stomach. Unconsciously, she began walking faster towards the clan's home. She had to make sure they were alright.

"What happened to the other warehouse?" Elisa asked.

"Did you hear all the talk about that monstrosity of an airship?"

Elisa nodded.

"Well, we checked. It wasn't from Xanatos Enterprises." Matt looked disgusted, "In all honesty, we don't have an i.d. on it yet."

"So, it was being flown by an unknown?" Elisa asked, stunned. "How can you have someone with a ship  _ that big _ flying around, and no one knows who they are?"

"It gets worse," Matt admitted. "The ship was seen hanging out at the second warehouse and shots were fired there, too. There was a call made from a very freaked out security guard one building over, saying that it sounded like there had been a small war over there."

"Thanks Matt," Elisa called over her shoulder as she started sprinting up the stairs. "I'll be down after sunrise and fill you in."


	4. Chapter 4

She made her way to the tower. Up the same nine flights of stairs, down the hall, past the small gym and locker rooms, and down the small hallway. The moment that she opened the door, she could tell that something was wrong. She could hear Goliath's voice, but it was the panic in the tone that worried her. She opened the door, lowered the ladder and was at the top before she realized that Goliath was calling Angela's name.

She hurried forward, toward the smaller figure laying half on the floor and half in Goliath's arms. "Give me room," She shouted, shoving clan members aside. It was a testament to how focused they were on what was happening in front of them, that they actually were able to be moved.

She helped Goliath lay his daughter flat, and put her training to work. As a member of the police force, she was trained as a first responder so that if she arrived to a scene and someone needed help, she could perform basic life saving techniques. She was required to keep up-to-date with training, and was thankful for the education now. She checked for a pulse and felt foolish as she did so… she didn't know Gargoyle anatomy! Who's to say that their pulse could be felt in the same way as a humans?

What she did know, however, was that Angela was not breathing. She tilted Angela's head back to open the airway, did a finger sweep to check for obstructions and move her tongue, and finally began performing CPR.

Breath in.

" **_Come on Angela."_ ** Elisa thought frantically.

Compression one.

" **_Breathe"_ **

Compression two.

" **_Breathe"_ **

Compression three.

" **_Breathe, damn it!"_ **

Breath in.

" **_Come on, girl."_ **

Compression one.

" **_You can do this"_ **

Compression two.

" **_You can beat this."_ **

Compression three.

" **_Just take one breath."_ **

Breath in.

" **_Just."_ **

Compression one.

" **_One."_ **

Compression two.

" **_Breath."_ **

Compression three.

Just as she was about to start the next round of compressions, Angela took a deep, gasping breath.

**_Thank you Gods_ ** , Elisa thought as she sat back. The clan surged forward to take care of Angela, and she moved aside.

Goliath thanked her, and all Elisa could think of to say right away was, "CPR. The gift that keeps on giving." She mentally slapped herself, and snapped back to reality. "What happened?"

The clan stumbled over each other as they tried to explain what had happened. Between Demona making off with that mystery disinfectant, and this threesome of people claiming to be Hunters, She didn't know what to make of it.

She tried to talk to Goliath, but he had vengeance in his eyes and in his heart. She was trying to talk some sense into him, but the sun chose that moment to rise. There had been times that Elisa truly cursed the sunrise, and today she used every phrase in her personal stash.

She made a vow to be back in the tower the moment that the sun went down to try to talk some sense into Goliath.

She made it back downstairs with only minutes before her shift officially began.

Jason was waiting there for her, and she checked in with the assignment desk. By chance, Matt was ready to go home at the same time that Elisa and Jason were heading out.

Matt took her aside and told her in a hurried whisper about the news crew that had set up on the front steps so that she wouldn't be caught unawares. He walked outside first, right into the glaring light of the news station's camera, and did his best to keep them away from his partner.

Judging by how rough she looked, Matt was pretty sure she would hurt the reporters. It was really for their safety that he was keeping them occupied.

Elisa and Jason walked out to the sounds of Matt's denial that Gargoyles exist, just before he started bending the reporter's ear with talk of aliens and other such supernatural beings.

Elisa felt a hysterical laugh welling up in her chest.  _ If only you knew how right you were about some of your theories… _

She choked it back, took hold of Jason's arm and hurried him along to her freshly repaired car.

Once in the car, Elisa hit the gas a little too quickly, spinning her tires a bit before they propelled them quickly away from the station house. Once on the road, she got her speed under control and aimed the car toward the warehouse district. She chose to go to the warehouse that Demona had hit, afraid of what she would find at the scene of Angela's attack.

They made it to the warehouse, and Elisa had just shoved the car into park, when John took her hand. He had been silent to whole time in the car, leaving Elisa to her thoughts, but he must have sensed that something was wrong.

He insisted that she tell him what was wrong, and Elisa struggled for the words, something she could say that didn't involve exposing her friends. "A very close friend of mine was… assaulted. She nearly died."

He seemed angry on her behalf, which was something of a relief, as she had no more energy to  _ be _ angry at the moment.

"Do we know who did it?" He asked.

"Not yet," Elisa shook her head. "I feel so…" She drifted off, unsure there  _ was _ a word for how she felt..

Jason helped by filling in the blank. "Frustrated. Helpless. Angry."

Elisa let a soft chuckle escape. "All of the above."

"You want to nail the guy who hurt your friend," He said.

"Yes," Elisa agreed, "I do."

"I've been there," He said, looking away from her. "I'm still there."

In that moment of camaraderie, Elisa put her hand on his where it lay on the dash. Their eyes met, and for a long moment Elisa couldn't look away.

She shook herself out of it, and pushed him away. "Check the point of entry, o.k.?"

He chuckled. "Right, chief."

While Jason looked at the door, Elisa walked inside. She was surprised to see Owen, Xanatos' lackey, inside and doing inventory.

She strode inside angrily and confronted Owen about his boss being in league with Demona again. He, in his typical monotone, assured her that that was not the case.

Owen went on to say that Xanatos no longer held any animosity toward the clan, that Xanatos felt that he owed the gargoyles a debt for saving the life of his infant son a few months back.

Elisa stormed out, sure that the whole thing was just another ploy to get the gargoyles. Xanatos had made such claims in the past, and it had turned out badly for everyone involved. There was no way that she was going to trust him with the clan. Not again.

Being a detective meant that you had to have a fairly trustworthy Bullshit Meter. Elisa's BS Meter screamed loud and clear when it came to David Xanatos.

Just outside of the warehouse, she joined Jason where he was bent over, examining the door.

As she knelt beside him to take a look at what had caught his interest, she caught sight of a gargoyle's claw marks.

**_Damn you, Demona,_ ** Elisa swore to herself.

"What could be strong enough to leave claw marks in solid steel?" Jason asked.

"I don't know of anything," Elisa said. "Maybe something hit it in the blast and gouged the metal. There are a lot of explosive chemicals in there that could have sent things flying in all directions. That could be why the door came off in the first place."

"Yeah," Jason said, sounding unconvinced.

"Lets finish up here, and then go get some lunch," Elisa suggested, hoping to keep Jason from looking at it all too closely.

Elisa and Jason grabbed a quick lunch at a small corner deli before heading to the second scene.

She had been correct in the assumption that it was going to be bad. There was a car in the front that had a distinct large imprint on the top that Elisa was willing to bet was Angela's body as she'd fallen from a great height. There were bullet and laser scorch marks everywhere, the roof was torn to shreds in most places… it looked as if World War 3 had been fought there.

That scene took a little longer to process than the first one, and by the time they made it back to the precinct, the sun was just setting.

Try as she might, Elisa couldn't break away soon enough to catch the clan. By the time she had made it to the tower, they were all awake and gone for the night.

"Damn it," Elisa swore.

She was done for the night, in more ways than one. She had been through an emotional wringer today, and had no one to talk to…

At least no one that she could tell the whole truth to.

She made her way to the car, feeling like her legs weighed a ton. She opened the door, and startled at the feel of a hand on her shoulder.

"Hey," Jason said. "Any word on your friend?"

"I think a good night's sleep helped." Elisa replied.

"And you," Jason insisted, "Are you alright?"

"Sure," She straightened her spine, "Don't worry about me. I'm a rock."

"Ok," He released his hold on her shoulder. "Well," he seemed to struggle for something to say. "I guess I'll see you later."

Elisa sighed as he turned to walk away. The thought of going back to her empty apartment was almost unbearable… but…

"Hey," Elisa called out before she could talk herself out of it. "You want to have dinner?"

Jason turned back toward her and smiled. "Sounds like a great idea to me."


	5. Chapter 5

A short time later, they arrived at Elisa's apartment.

She opened the door, flipping on the lights as she went.

"I hope you don't mind," Elisa said, hesitantly. "I just wasn't up to a crowded restaurant."

"Not a problem, believe me," He said.

They made some idle chit chat while Elisa scanned the kitchen for dinner ideas.

Turning the conversation to work, Jason asked questions about the job and his new co-workers. They speculated who he would be paired with, as they had not received any official word yet, and Elisa gave him the pros and cons on anyone that was brought up in conversation.

The whole while, Jason leaned against the door jamb as if he hadn't a care in the world. Elisa envied him that, as it felt like the world had crashed down on her head and sent her reeling.

She took advantage of his preoccupation in the conversation to really look at him. He was tall, broad through the shoulders, square jaw, thick brown hair… yeah, he was handsome and seemed to be genuinely interested in her.

Something was bothering her though, and had been nagging at her since they had met. Finally, it hit her… he actually resembled what she remembered Goliath's human form to look like. Maybe that was why her brain had been messing with her.

Suddenly, Jason looked up. His eyes seemed to clear, as if he had been lost in thoughts himself.

He seemed almost ready to say something, when a plaintive meow broke the silence. They both looked down to see Elisa's Cat, Cagney, winding his way around Jason's legs and purring.

"Who's this friendly guy?" Jason asked with a laugh. Bending, he scooped the small grey cat into his arms.

"This is Cagney," Elisa said, reaching out to give the cat a scratch. "He seems to like you."

"Yeah," Jason said, meeting Elisa's eyes.

"Uh… Here, let me take him," She said, picking the cat up and carrying him to his cat bed across the room.

She placed Cagney down, and was surprised that Jason was right behind her.

He reached up and cupped her jaw. Holding her gaze, he lowered his face to hers and kissed her.

For a moment, Elisa gave herself over to the kiss.

But then her brain kicked into high gear, and a voice in her head started screaming, ‘ **_What are you doing?’_ **

Elisa pulled away and turned around. What  _ had _ she been thinking?

Jason, her partner, even if it were temporary. He was handsome, thoughtful, kind, strong… everything that she thought she wanted in a guy.

Until she had fallen for someone else.

Until she had met Goliath.

‘ **_What a mess I've made of things…’_ ** Elisa thought to herself.

"There's someone else," Jason stated, almost as if he had read her mind.

"Yes," Elisa sighed, running her hands through her hair. Frustrated, she continued, "No. There is someone else that I care for deeply, but it would be impossible to get involved with him."

"I'm sorry, I guess I got carried away," Jason said. He shoved his hands in his pockets, and stared at the floor. "It's just… there hasn't been anyone for me in a long time. You think you get used to it, and… well..." he looked up once more, "Bad timing. I'll go now."

He walked to the door and let himself out while Elisa remained frozen to her spot in the living room. She wanted to call out to him, call him back or apologize.  _ Something. _

As the door shut behind him, what was left of her strength left her, and she sank to the floor to sit. She braced her forearms on her knees and rested her head on her arms.

What had she just done? What had she been about to do?

What about Goliath?

It had been just the one kiss... and it wasn't like she betrayed Goliath in any way. What she'd told Jason had been the truth. She did care for another… for Goliath… deeply. She'd been afraid to completely open herself up to that fact until...

Until she kissed Jason, and ended up hurting him badly just because she hadn't been

sure.

Gargoyle or not, she had feelings for Goliath. Sure, she'd been the one to stop him

from saying anything along those lines before, but… she'd been scared.

There! She admitted it.

Scared of getting involved, scared of getting hurt, and scared that he'd decide he

wanted Demona after all and leaving her behind.

She gave up holding the tears back, and cried until she felt almost hollow.

She had no idea how long she'd sat there, huddled in her living room, but she knew one thing for sure now...

She desperately needed to talk to Goliath.

A few hours later, Elisa dragged herself to the bathroom. Cringing at how ragged she looked, she splashed her face with cold water.

Repeatedly.

Once she was awake and aware of her surroundings, once she was able to think clearly again, she changed her clothes and headed back to the station. The sun would be rising in a few hours, but she had to try to talk to Goliath before then.

She could not keep it to herself anymore, and to do so was doing her more harm than good.

What is the worst thing that he could do?

**_‘Laugh at you,’_ ** a dark voice in Elisa’s head pointed out.

No, Goliath would never be that cruel…

And when had she become such a girl, anyway? The kind of girl who worried over what a guy thinks, and if he liked her used to irritate the bejeezus out of her.

For her, it was because this mattered. Goliath mattered.

Elisa got in her car and drove to the station. She sat in the car for an embarrassing amount of time before getting out.

Once she did, she walked like a woman on a mission… Hands unconsciously clenched into fists, eyes forward, and fast purposeful steps. She  _ was _ on a mission, and didn't want to be stopped.

She opened the station door and entered the usual night shift chaos.

She was halfway down the hallway on the ground floor when a large explosion rocked the building. She was knocked off of her feet, and struggled to get upright.

Another odd sound met her ears. It sounded like a jet engine… but that couldn't be right, could it? She turned to see a figure on a small flying machine heading for her. He was dressed in some kind of suit, complete with a black mask that completely obscured his features.

She turned to run, but was caught around the waist and hauled in front of the figure as pieces of the ceiling began falling around them. Once on the vehicle, the driver flipped around, flinging both of them into the night sky.

It was then that Elisa registered what the explosion had been…

"No," Elisa gasped. "No!" She screamed when she caught sight of the clock tower.

Or where the tower had been. Instead of the tall stone tower and lit clock faces, there was only a pile of rubble.

It was gone and there was no sign of the Gargoyles.

She turned to the driver, "What have you done?" She screamed. Without thinking, she reached up and gripped the back of the mask. In her anger, she ripped the mask away, to reveal…

"Jason?" she gasped in shock.

"I will explain later," he hurried to assure her, even as he brought an air injection gun from his pocket. "I promise," he said as he injected the fluid through Elisa's jeans and into her system.

Elisa felt the pressure on her thigh, and almost instantaneously the world faded to black.

Elisa groaned, fighting her way out of the drugged state that were clouding her system. The overwhelming feeling that she was going to be sucked back under at any moment kept her fighting. One by one, she moved her limbs. She turned her head slowly from side to side.

Well, she was not being restrained, and she was not sure that was a good thing or not.

She didn't even know where she was, or if she was alone. That thought was enough to finally kick her system into high gear. As the adrenaline burned off the remainder of the drugs in her system, she finally managed to open her eyes.

She was… in her bed. She was fully dressed, laying on the top of her blankets with Cagney sleeping at her feet.

Before she even attempted to sit up, she ran through the events leading to that moment. Angela's attack, the frantic CPR, the dinner invite and kiss from Jason…

Jason, who blew up the clock tower with the clan in it.

Elisa clamped a hand over her mouth, because she wanted to scream again, and she was not a hundred percent sure that she was really alone.

As quickly and quietly as she could, she kicked her shoes off and rolled over to the edge of the bed. Silently, she put first one foot and then the other on the floor, then stood up and made her way in her sock-clad feet to her bedroom door. With her ear pressed to the wood, she didn't hear anything. There was no light coming from under the door, so all of her lights were off.

Great. If there was someone in her apartment, she would be straining to see them.

Well, it was what it was… but damned if she was going to just lay in her bed, waiting for something to happen. She opened her nightstand drawer, and entered in the combination for her gun lock box for her spare handgun. She let out a breath of relief that it was there. She was not unarmed.

May the Gods help Jason, and anyone else who may be with him.

Silently, she opened her bedroom door. She slowly made her way through her apartment.

First, to the spare room next door. Clear.

Next, the hall closet. Clear.

Bathroom. Clear.

Then she made her way through the living room, careful to look in the shadows. Finally, convinced that the living area and kitchen were empty, she flipped the light switch.

She had to blink rapidly to focus, because the sudden light after the drugged sleep and navigation in darkness, the light suddenly sent a sharp pain through her head.

Groaning, she rubbed at her eyes.

Once her vision began to clear, she noticed a dark shape outside. She was afraid that they might not be friendly, so she once again raised her weapon.

"Freeze!" Elisa yelled, feeling proud of the fact that her voice came out considerably stronger than she was feeling.

"Elisa?" came a soft female voice.

Elisa could not believe her ears. "A.." she cleared her throat and tried a second time, "Angela?"

The shape moved closer to the light, and the window slowly opened.

"Angela," Elisa cried out, dropping her weapon to the floor at her side. One by one, the shadows on her balcony began to move and take shape.

"Oh, my god," Elisa breathed. "You're alive. You are all alive."

It was too much for Elisa. Between the high adrenaline from waking up and having to search for possible intruders, seeing the destruction of the Gargoyles' home and then finding out that they had survived, and what was left of the tranquilizer in her system... She covered her mouth with her hands and made a mad dash for the bathroom. She violently emptied what little she had in her stomach.

Then, she began to cry. Not one of those pretty, movie cries, either. This was a full out, heart wrenching, can't- catch- your- breath cry. She sat on the tile floor and valiantly tried to get a hold of herself.

The bathroom door opened slowly.

"Elisa?" Angela called softly. It distressed her to hear the sobbing, and she wanted to find out what was wrong with her friend. She put her hand on Elisa's shoulder, and was surprised when she basically threw herself into her arms. Angela was still confused as to why her friend was so upset, but in the time that she'd known Elisa, she had never seen her act like this. One thing she did know, was that if anyone could help her, it was her Goliath.

"Father?" Angela called, carrying the still half hysterical human woman into the room.

Taloned hands gathered her close, and she could hear their voices.  _ All _ of their voices. They were safe, and they were here in her apartment. The voices muted, the light dimmed suddenly, and Elisa opened her eyes to find that Goliath had wrapped his wings tightly around the both of them. Elisa was grateful for the little bit of extra privacy while she tried to get a hold of herself.

It was some time before she could stop crying, and a bit longer for her to tell everyone that she was alright.

"We did not know that you were home." Angela said. "Why were there no lights on?"

"It's a long story, Angela," Elisa said, tired now that her emotional outburst had faded. "Is everyone alright? How did you manage to escape?"

"Well, Lexington found this thing that…"

"Lass," Hudson called. "Ye' will be needing to see this."

Elisa walked over to see that Hudson was watching on the television, and was stunned. It was a news report being done by the same reporter that Matt had cornered… God, had it only been that morning?... about the clock tower's explosion. No details were known about the cause just yet, but the station house that had held the tower was heavily damaged. There were still a couple of officers unaccounted for, but most had been found. There were a few injuries due to falling debris, and those who needed medical attention were being taken to St. David's Hospital in Manhattan.

Elisa was stunned. How could she have forgotten about her fellow officers?

She looked at the clan helplessly. "I… I want to stay, but…" She trailed off, gesturing helplessly at the television.

"Sunrise is not far off now," Goliath said. "Hudson was hurt in the explosion, and will need to rest here for the day."

"All of you, stay here." Elisa insisted. "Find a comfortable spot in the bedrooms, or anywhere away from the windows, and I will be back before sundown."

They all agreed, and with a renewed sense of urgency, she grabbed her things and was out the door.

It wasn't until she reached the street that she remembered that her car must still be parked outside of the station.

Swearing, she started jogging towards the busier streets ahead so that she could flag a taxi.


	6. Chapter 6

An hour and a half later, she entered the hospital waiting area. It was filled with what the medical profession called a "blue wall". A Blue Wall was what happened whenever a cop was injured or sick, and the waiting area is suddenly wall to wall people in blue uniforms that hang around until they have word of their comrade's condition.

That's what happened when a single officer was hurt or sick… this was an entire station house that had come under fire. Most of the officers that she could see here weren't even from her station house, but it didn't seem to matter. Hurt one cop, and everyone answers the call.

Unsure of where to start, Elisa scouted for a familiar face. Finally, in the back of the room near the corner, she found someone. "Matt!", Elisa called out, jumping up and down and waving to get his attention. When that didn't work, she shouted, "Bluestone!" She managed to fight her way closer, and as soon as Matt saw her, his eyes grew huge.

"Maza!" He shouted, surprised, shoving through the crowd to get to her. "Where the hell have you been, woman?" He reached out to give her a tight bear hug. He pushed her out to arms length and looked her in the eyes. "The only thing that we knew was that you were seen by the assignment desk coming in just before the blast. When I got to the house, I was worried, because your car was there but we couldn't find you. I thought for sure that you'd been in that damn tower." He stopped talking and shook his head. "I got back to the station as soon as I could, and I got there about the same time as your dad. He came down to help where he could, and is probably still there looking for you. We heard someone say something about a flying vehicle that may or may not have had you on it… but as far as I know, there are officers still down there trying to find you."

Matt turned to the rest of the officers. "I need someone to contact any officers at the 23rd and tell them that Detective Elisa Maza has been found. She is fine, and in the St. David's waiting room."

There was a round of applause, and a chorus of voices relaying the information into their radios.

"Elisa," Matt leaned close to whisper over the sudden noise. "The clan?"

Elisa nodded, "They are alive, and at my place."

Matt looked visibly relieved. "And you? What happened to you?"

"I need to tell the chief too, and I don't want to have to explain it more than once."

He nodded again, letting her know that he understood. "The chief was pinned under a file cabinet that fell on her and broke her leg. She is in surgery now, but should be out soon."

"We have time then," Elisa said, motioning for him to follow her. Once they were outside in the morning sunshine, Elisa felt like she could breath for the first time in hours.

"I need your help, Matt."

"Of course." Matt said, matter of factly. "What can I do?"

"Help me research Jason Conover. I want to know where he came from. I want to talk to his former boss and coworkers."

Matt was taken by surprise. "The new guy? The guy who was assigned to you? What happened to him?"

"He was there," Elisa said. "He was the guy on the flying machine, and who got me out of the building. He drugged me with… hell… I don't know what, broke into my apartment and left me there."

Matt just looked pissed off now. "Are you alright?"

"I think I'm o.k. now. I was a little nauseous earlier, but it has mostly passed. Now I'm just angry."

"Alright." He said, angry as well. "Where do you want me to start?"

Elisa found a smile, and gave him a quick kiss on the cheek. "Thanks Matt."

Captain Maria Chavez ran her station house with an efficiency that most Army Generals would be envious of. The fact that she was in a hospital bed meant nothing to her. She was on the phones arranging cleanup and repairs for her station almost before the anesthesia wore off.

It had been almost 12 hours since the explosion, and Maria was not about to let someone else come in to take care of her station or her people.

When Matt and Elisa burst into her room before she was not technically allowed visitors, she welcomed them with open arms. When the nursing staff attempted to chase them out of the room, Maria sent them scattering with a look and some choice words.

She paged through the file that her two detectives had handed to her, even as the news report was playing on the small hospital television in the corner.

Once the two detectives had given their report to her, she calmly picked up her telephone and called a friend of hers who happened to be a judge. Within the next hour, she had made arrangements for a warrant to be issued for one Jason Canmore, and his two siblings.

Five minutes later, she had a printed, physical copy of the warrant in her hand.

Now they just had to find them.

Elisa was not about to get off easy.

Her father met her in the waiting room after her meeting with the Captain. He was pissed, and that was putting it lightly. Covered head to toe in concrete dust and who knew what else, he had been half convinced for several hours that he was going to find his daughter's body under the collapsed walls and rubble. He had such an overwhelming sense of relief when he had been notified that she was alive, that he had needed to sit for a good ten minutes before he could function again. He had wanted to rush to the hospital, but he still had work to do helping those where were still at the house and injured.

It wasn't that he didn't understand what it was like, being on the job when disaster struck… but his daughter hadn't even bothered to try to find him on her own. He had to drag his suddenly ancient-feeling, tired ass down to the hospital to confirm in his own mind that she was fine.

He alternated between verbally tearing her up as if she were still a beat cop rookie, and hugging her.

Finally, Elisa had convinced him to go home and get some rest. She entered her own living room around four o'clock in the afternoon. she was in desperate need of sleep… non-drugged sleep, thank you very much.

The gargoyles had managed to all fit within the two bedrooms, and away from the wall of windows that lined her living room. Unfortunately, that didn't leave a lot of room for Elisa. Resigned, she grabbed a small Afghan that her grandmother had made for her, and bedded down on the couch.

Exhausted, she fell into sleep. Once more, she was thrown into a dream where Goliath and Jason kept coming before her… only this time, their faces were angry.

At each other. Both blaming the other for what had happened.

At her. For her betrayal and hurt they endured at her hands.

And this time, when she fell, no one caught her.

She woke with a start to the roaring of the Gargoyles. She looked around quickly, not quite awake enough to remember where she was and why she was on the couch.

Her memory returned with a crashing force, and she got to her feet quickly.

The clan members filed in, a subdued, somber group compared to their usual selves.

She hurried to share what little information that she had about Jason and his siblings, and their part in the destruction of the clock tower.

The clan filled her in on the events of the previous night. The tracking device that Lexington had found at the last possible moment, that has saved them all.

Goliath stayed silent and brooding through the most of the conversation, and when he did speak it was in anger. He had revenge on his mind, and no one could convince him otherwise. He was well beyond reason by this point, and none of them could talk him out of it.

Elisa had to try one more time to talk Goliath down. "Please, let the law handle this."

"The law?" Goliath roared. "What about justice?"

Elisa softened her voice, "Look, I'm sorry, but you don't want justice. You want vengeance."

"She's right Goliath." Brooklyn stepped up to his leader.

"What?" Goliath growled.

"Look at what this feud has cost us already," Angela begged her father.

"That's exactly why we must have vengeance!" Goliath shouted.

"Or maybe that's why we should let it go," Hudson added, putting a hand on his leader's shoulder.

Goliath shook his friend's hand off. He strode across the room and gathered together the spare radio communicator. He talked to Lexington about tracking the Hunters, then stormed outside.

"Listen, Goliath, we're going with you," Brooklyn insisted.

"Stay here," Goliath growled. "And that's an order."

The rest of the clan watched helplessly as their leader left alone to face the Hunters.

"Lexington," Elisa pulled him aside. "Can you really trace the signal back to the Hunters?"

"I can try," Lexington said softly.

Elisa gestured to the computer. "Please, do what you can."

Lexington began striking keys, and working programs as if he had been born in this time. Elisa was straining her brain, trying to think of how to help.

"Wait!" She said out loud, before rushing from the room. In a box, on the top shelf of her closet, was a spare communicator. She turned on the earpiece so that she would be able to catch the directions that Lexington was feeding Goliath.

She ran back into the living room and grabbed her gun and two spare clips of ammo, just in case.

Ready, she turned to the clan. "O.K., who's up to giving me a ride?" She asked while putting her shoulder holster on.

As she'd expected, the clan burst out with protests. They didn't want to disobey and disappoint their leader.

"I know that you were ordered to stay here, but he can't fight these guys on his own. There are three of them, and only one of him. I have faith in Goliath's fighting abilities, but they have almost killed a couple of you twice now. They have weapons that we have no experience with, and that will only stack the cards further in  _ their _ favor!" She tugged on her red leather jacket. "Now,  _ who's going to take me _ ?"

"I'll take you Elisa," Broadway offered.

"Let's go," Elisa urged, already heading for the window.

Broadway picked her up, and suddenly they were airborne.

"Goliath won't like this," he murmured.

"Yeah, well," Elisa said, angrily. "He didn't order  _ me _ to stay put."

"I see him," Elisa called out. "He's on the Dam. Hurry, Broadway."

The fight had already begun. Goliath was doing admirably, dodging the lasers and gunfire aimed for him, but how long could he keep it up?

Broadway swooped low to deposit her on the top of the Croton Dam before gliding high to join Goliath.

One hunter crashed on his flying machine, and rolled to a stop only feet from where Elisa stood. He stood, and looked up to where the fighting was carrying on without him.

Elisa pulled her gun, and aimed at him. "I don't suppose there is any way you could stop this."

"I wish," can the sad reply.

Everything was happening so fast. Both Goliath and Broadway were dodging through the air as shots whizzed by them.

Broadway managed to take the female hunter out of the fight by disabling her flying vehicle.

Then it was down to two, Goliath and Jason.

Goliath suddenly ducked behind a pillar. As Jason flew by, Goliath reached out, knocking him to the ground. Then they were on the dam, facing off on the narrow ledge, these two angry males who were both out for vengeance.

She ran to help, and Goliath turned to order her back.

That was all it took. Taking advantage of Goliath's inattention, Jason threw some sort of electrical pulse weapon at Goliath's chest.

"Oh, God," Elisa whispered to herself. She jumped over the guardrail that was the final barrier between her and the fight. She threw herself between the two combatants, "Stop this, please, both of you!"

"Not while they live," Jason snarled, pushing her behind him and out of their way.

Elisa briefly teetered on the edge of the dam before regaining her balance. The sound of rushing water that met her ears was almost deafening, the height between herself and the water below made her heart skip a beat in her chest.

She turned back to Goliath and Jason. She saw that Jason was rushing the gargoyle with a large, wicked-looking sword blade that extended from some sort of contraption up the sleeve of his armor.

Once more, she ran forward to try to get them to stop.

Suddenly, Goliath brought his fists upward.

Jason was being knocked backward with enough speed that she simply did not have time to react. Jason's flying body slammed into hers with enough force that he knocked her off of the edge of the dam with him.

And then she was falling.

It was her nightmares all over again. She looked up to see Goliath diving towards her, reaching for her hand. Elisa strained to reach for him. Her fingertips brushed his once… twice…

She was trying for a third grab when she ran out of time. She connected with the water streaming from the dam's floodgates above, and the coldness of the water almost stole her breath. She held what breath she had, but knew that it was not enough.

Then she hit the water at the bottom, and it felt like hitting concrete. She sank below the surface, her lungs screaming at her for air. She needed air badly, but couldn't find her way to the surface. It was night, and the water was so dark.

Her head broke the surface and she was able to get a little air, but the churning of the water at the base of the dam proved to be too strong and it sucked her back under the water.

Elisa lost count of the times that she was able to get just a little air, enough to keep going for a little longer, but it wasn't enough...

She fought as hard as she could, but in the end her body betrayed her.

The rest was darkness.


	7. Chapter 7

Elisa heard the voice first. It was a familiar voice, but it was annoying her.

Why couldn't he leave her alone. She was so tired. She just wanted to be left alone.

"Come on Elisa. Wake up, damn you!" There was a tremendous pressure on her abdomen, just below her ribs, and then the urge to vomit took over.

"That's it," the voice said, soothingly, as she was rolled her on her side. She coughed as her body expelled the river water from her body.

"That's it," the voice said again, "Cough it up. Come on."

Once the urge to be sick had subsided somewhat, Jason allowed her to lay on her back. Elisa wanted to lash out at him, but her body had begun to shiver to try to warm itself up. Her teeth were chattering with such force, she honestly thought that it might chip her teeth.

Weakly, she tried to push him away from her. He gave a disgusted sigh and picked her up. Elisa cried out in pain. Everything hurt.

"Elisa, stop." He said sternly. "I have an insulated suit on that protected me from the cold and most of the damage that your body has taken. When you are back to normal, you can swipe at me all you want. Right now, however, we need to find a way to get you some help."

If it weren't for the fact that she was so tired, she'd take some swipes now, just for the hell of it. With a sigh, she closed her eyes.

"No," Jason shook her roughly. "Don't you dare go to sleep on me."

"Why?" Elisa demanded. Hey eyes felt gritty, and her throat felt raw.

"Because I'm not sure how much of that water is still in your lungs. You are hurt, sick and hypothermic." Jason pointed out. "I spent a lot of time and energy of my own trying to keep your head above water, breathing and I'll be damned if I lose you now."

"No," Elisa croaked out. "I mean… Why the… Hunters…"

He sighed deep enough that Elisa's head rose and fall with his chest. "I was wondering when you'd ask, and the answer is not an easy one. The simple fact is that I don't know anymore. It is an obsession that has been passed down through my family for generations. My father was obsessed with the hunt, and when the one he called 'the demon' caused his death sixteen years ago, the… tradition… passed on to my siblings and I."

Elisa's voice was still hoarse from the screaming, water and the coughing, but she managed to croak out, "Why did… you come… here?"

"News reports, mainly." John admitted. "We monitor news reports from around the world. New York, or rather, the Manhattan Island area, seemed to be crawling with reports of flying creatures. It seemed logical that the Demon that we have hunted for so long be among them."

"So you hunt and destroy Gargoyles? That is your sole purpose in life?" Elisa wanted to scream. What she got was a rather weak sounding whisper. Damn it… "They are my friends, and the city's protectors."

"I did not know that when I became your partner," Jason said.

"Right," She drew out that word as long as she could.

He noticed the sarcasm and her angry look. "You think I did know," He stated as fact. "I guess I can't blame you, but it is the truth that I had no advance knowledge. How could we have had any warning that they had human connections? Friends and Protectors, all of you."

"You lied before," Elisa shrugged. She was not about to believe anything that he said, even if he  _ did _ look sincere.

**_Fool me once…_ **

He heaved a world weary sigh. "I deserve that." He admitted. "Anyhow, Most of the sightings in Manhattan were centered around the police station and the clock tower. To get closer, my family falsified documents to pass ourselves off as people who could get closer to those who were closer to the monst… uh, the gargoyles."

Elisa glared at him. She had caught his little slip there, even if he had stopped to correct himself.

He continued, "I have the documentation and weapons experience to pass myself off as a police officer. My brother, Jon, got a job with the television station that had the most reports of Gargoyle activity." Jason slipped a step down the river bank while he was talking. Elisa felt herself slip in his grip, but was unable to call up the strength to stop her descent.

Jason went down to one knee, and readjusted Elisa more firmly in his arms. Carefully, he once again got to his feet in search of help.

"My sister, Robyn," Jason continued, "Got a position with Dominique Destine in her company. Aside from the extra money it brought in, we felt the need to investigate her as well."

"Why?" Elisa knew who Dominique  _ really  _ was, but was curious to know if or how the Hunters had found out.

"Just idle gossip and rumors mostly." Jason admitted. "She's never seen out at night, she has a temper and a violent streak a mile wide, comparing pictures of the demon and Dominique, and they have almost identical facial structures."

Elisa had only been half listening. She was trying to keep her eyes peeled for a sign of civilization, and had finally caught sight of the road. Excitedly, the pointed it out to Jason.

She may not like him right that moment, but he was her only chance of survival. She still hurt everywhere. She was weak, cold and it vaguely felt like an elephant was sitting on her chest. She was also half sick with worry about the clan. What had happened last night after she and Jason had gone over the edge of the dam? Had Goliath and Broadway made it home safety?

"What…" Elisa had to clear her throat before she could continue, "What about your brother and sister?"

"Ah, well," Jason said, "My brother, Jon, is the youngest. He barely remembers our father and the reason for our hunting the Demon. Jon's heart isn't in the hunt, not really. He wanted to stop years ago, and I think it may be time to stop as well." Jason's boots finally made contact with pavement with a solid  **thunk** . Turning, he started in the direction he thought New York might be.

"Robyn, now," Jason continued, "She's the middle child and the only girl. I think she may be out to prove something, as there have never been female hunters in our family. She's getting tired of the hunt as well, though."

"And you're not?" Elisa spat out through chattering teeth.

"It is the only life I have known," Jason admitted quietly. "It is what I was trained from childhood to do."

"S... s… sorry," Elisa shivered.

"Don't worry that pretty head over it," Jason admonished. "What we need to do is to get you one of these insulated suits. We never knew where the hunt would take us, so we always carried these with us. Cold weather, water, electrical pulses… and a few other things."

Elisa was trying to pay attention, but it was as if his voice were coming from the other end of a tunnel. It had an echo to it, and even though Elisa knew that it was a bad thing to do, she closed her eyes.

She was so tired, and his voice really was relaxing to listen to…

Jason gave her a hard shake. "Elisa! You have to stay awake."

"Tired," Elisa mumbled, but couldn't open her eyes.

"Elisa," Jason's voice held a sharp edge to it. "Open your eyes. You want to go home and see Cagney don't you? And your gargoyle friends? What happens to them if you drift off?"

"Go to hell," Elisa said, angrily, but it got her to open her eyes. "Do you even know where you are going?"

"It's a road," He said plainly. "I am walking down it. It leads somewhere, and that somewhere may have people."

Silence hung over them, leaving them both alone with their thoughts.

Elisa's thoughts were with with her family.

Her parents who had overcome so much to give their family the best love and support that they could. Her brother, once a police officer himself, now running an underground shelter for the homeless and lost. Her sister, in her last year of study in Arizona for her Anthropology degree. Would she make it to see them again?

And the Clan… more specifically, with Goliath. Why had she never taken the time to express how she felt about him? Or to herself for that matter? What was she so afraid of?

The distant sound of tires on pavement reached both of their ears around the same time. It wasn't a car sound, but it was a sign of humans.

Hopefully.

Two voices came from somewhere in the distance. They were high pitched enough that Elisa automatically pegged them as children. She only hoped that those children were accompanied by adults, or at least know where some were.

"Can't catch me," One voice called out.

"Can too!" A second voice answered.

Suddenly, two small figured sped around a bend of the road and into view.

Jason tried to wave at them, but couldn't keep hold of Elisa at the same time. He called out to them, instead.

The rider in the lead hit his brakes and swerved in their direction. "Hey," He called out. He looked to be no more than 13 or so, shaggy red hair and a face full of freckles. He looked as if her were set for some exploration, complete with a loaded hiking pack.

The rider behind him also hit their brakes, coming to an almost complete stop. She looked to be somewhere in her late teens or early twenties, blonde hair that was so dark it bordered on a light brown, and braids. She was dressed similar to the boy with jeans, a flannel shirt and a back pack.

"Whoah," the girl said, wide eyed. "What happened to you two?"

"We were canoeing," Jason lied smoothly. "My friend fell in, and we both were swept down the river a ways. Is there somewhere nearby that we could go for help? My friend," he nodded down at Elisa, "She is in need of a doctor soon."

The girl nodded, and turned to the boy. "Go get mom."

The boy gaped at her. "You go get her."

The girl sent him a withering look. "You ride faster than I do."

"Fine," he said huffily.

"Leave your pack," the girl said, all efficient now. "You will ride faster without it, and I need the blankets."

"Fine," the boy snarled again.

"Siblings?" Elisa choked out.

"Step siblings," the girl smiled. "But, yeah. You're in luck," she said, digging into the boys pack. "My mother is an emergency nurse who happens to be home today. On top of that," she rose, two tightly rolled sleeping bags in her arms, "We were going to do some camping tonight with some friends."

Jason turned on his 100 watt smile on her, and the girl blushed. "You are a lifesaver," he praised her.

"No," she smiled shyly at him. "You're just lucky that we were late getting to the campsite." She unfurled one of the bags, and laid it on the shoulder of the road.

"That we are," Jason said, setting Elisa gently on the bag. He unrolled the other bag, and wrapped it around her shoulders.

The girl frowned at Elisa. "The best way for you to warm up is to strip off all of your wet clothes."

Elisa knew that, but she was hoping that it wouldn't be necessary. Not with Jason there.

She would if she had to, but  _ really _ didn't want to.

Elisa saw the moment that the girl understood. The girl smiled, and dug in the packs once more.

"Can you do something for me?" she asked Jason. "My brother, the budding pyromaniac, brought along these railroad flares to use tonight in some nefarious way, I'm sure."

She handed the flares to Jason. "Can you go down the road and light these? Especially on the curved part of the road down there. I would hate for us all to get hit by a car because the driver didn't see us in time."

Jason took the flares and walked away.

"There," the girl said. "Let's get you wrapped up before he gets back."

Elisa looked at her, gratefully. "Thank you," she choked out.

Together, they got her out of her leather jacket, shirt and pants. She was fully wrapped in the sleeping bag before Jason came back.

"Um, I seem to have lost track of where I am." Elisa said. "Where are we right now?"

"Oh," Katie blinked at her. "Well, you are on the southern end of Tallman State Park."

"Well," Elisa tried to joke. "At least I'm still in New York."

"Ah, yes. The great New Jersey versus New York rivalry." The girl grinned. "You didn't cross into Jersey, no worries."

Elisa was feeling slightly warmer, but still couldn't get the shivering under control.

"I never got your name," Jason said.

"Oh," the girl stammered. "My name is Katheryn. Katie is what everyone calls me."

"Alright," Jason said, holding his hand out. "Katie, I am Jason Canmore. The lady that you just helped save is Detective Elisa Maza."

"A detective?" Katie exclaimed. She turned to Elisa, "I am starting college next fall. I want to work in forensics and crime scene investigation,"

Elisa looked at this girl in a new light. She had a good head on her shoulders, even at her age. She hadn't hesitated to take charge of the situation and handled it all with a calm that showed a level of maturity that few her age had.

"You go to school, and keep in touch with me," Elisa said. "I am a detective at the Manhattan 23rd precinct, and when you are ready," she paused to cough, "I will put in a good word for you."

Katie beamed. "Thank you."

There was the sudden roar of an engine approaching, and the girl rolled her eyes. "There's my mom. When there's an emergency, she pushes the car a little hard."

A dark colored pickup rounded the corner at a fast pace, squealing to a stop a few feet away from the group.

A small, plump woman jumped from the cab. Her dark brown hair a mass of curls around a friendly plump face. She moved quickly to the group.

"Katie," she called out. "Grab the first aid kit out of the back, while I talk to these folks."

"Sure, mom," Katie said. She got up, and ran to the truck.

"I heard you folks got into a little bit of trouble." She said, looking Elisa and Jason over. She seemed to decide on the spot that Jason was in better shape, so turned her focus to Elisa.

Elisa nodded.

"Yes ma'am," Jason said.

The woman laughed. "No need for ma'am to me." she said. "My name is Linda."

Once again, Jason introduced themselves.

"O.K. Jason? Can you help my Katie dig through that mess of a truck? I have a large first aid kit in a Maroon gym bag."

Jason nodded, and moved to the truck.

"Now," she turned back to Elisa. "Let's take a look at you. Your coloring is a little off, and it sounds like you may have inhaled a bit of river water."

Elisa nodded.

Jason and Katie returned with the gym bag. Linda unzipped it, and efficiently started digging through it. She emerged with a stethoscope, and hung it around her neck.

"Let's have a listen, shall we?" she said cheerfully.

Elisa could see why she would be a wonderful nurse. Great bedside manner that had put her at ease and an efficiency to get things done.

"Mom, did you call the paramedics?" Katie asked. "Or should I take the car down to call them."

"I already called, dear," Linda responded. She listened to Elisa's heart and lungs before hanging the stethoscope around her neck. "You still have some fluid in your lungs," she said, "but your heart sounds fine. The worry with the fluid is that it will be a little uncomfortable to breathe for a bit until it works its way out of your system, and with all of the lovely things in the water, you may be a fine candidate for Pneumonia."

Elisa groaned.

"I noticed a lot of bruising happening." Linda frowned. "You were Canoeing and fell into the river?"

"Near the Croton River Dam," Elisa said.

Linda's eyes widened in surprise. "That's quite a ways away. No wonder you are all bruised and soaked through. Did you lose consciousness?"

Elisa nodded.

"Well, that's not surprising. You must have hit every branch, log and sandbar on your way here."

Elisa didn't want to tell her that the marks were probably from hitting the water, and possibly the dam wall at some point on her way down.

Linda turned her attention to Elisa's head. "Any headaches? Blackouts?"

Elisa shook her head. "Just tired."

"I imagine so," the nurse said. "Just hang on a bit longer, and the ambulance will be here to take you folks back into the city. In the meantime, I had just made a pot of coffee at home, and poured it into a thermos for you folks."

"I have it, Mom," Katie said, handing it over.

"Thank you, honey."

She poured the coffee into the cup shaped lid, and passed it to Elisa first. "The best way to warm you up safely is with those sleeping bags. Since that is out of the way, we can start working on warming you from the inside out."

Elisa took the cup gratefully, and took a sip.

"It is times like this that I wish I had one of those cellular phones around." Linda said apologetically. "Your families must be worried sick about you."

Elisa nodded, but stayed silent. Her family didn't know about the accident. The only ones she cared about talking to were asleep in their stone skin for the day somewhere.

Jason shook his head. "No problem. We can talk to our families soon enough."

In the distance, the wail of a siren began to approach.

Elisa looked at Linda, "Do you have a pen and paper in your bag?"

Linda nodded, and started rummaging in the bag once more. A few moments later, she came up with a pocket sized notebook and a blue fountain pen.

Elisa took it, and shakily scratched out her address and telephone number. She handed the items back to Linda. "Here is my information for Katie. She's going to do well in forensics, and we always need great crime scene people."

Linda was taken aback, but handed the note to her daughter. "Thank you."

Elisa shook her head. "No, thank you. For everything."

The flashing blue and red lights of the ambulance came into view, and Elisa was sad to see Katie and her mother getting out of the way for the EMTs.

A few minutes later, and both she and Jason were loaded into the ambulance, and speeding to the nearest hospital.

They immediately hooked her up with wires to monitors, started an IV for fluids and one of those evil automatic blood pressure cuffs.

Elisa used what little power her badge gave her, and insisted that she be flown by helicopter to Manhattan General Hospital for treatment.

It was early afternoon now. Elisa prayed that they would be back in Manhattan by nightfall. The last clear memory that she had was of Goliath trying to save her, and his anguished cry when he could not.

She had to let him, and the rest of the clan of course, know that she was alive.

" **_Please,"_ ** Elisa prayed. " **_Please, let me get there soon."_ **


	8. Chapter 8

Once at the hospital, the doctors begged her to stay overnight, but Elisa was not about to do that. The sun had set minutes ago, and she was frantic to leave.

She promised to follow up with her personal doctor, and start pumping antibiotics into her system as soon as she could, and that had to be good enough.

The reluctantly released her after gaining her "friend" Jason's promise that she would be well looked after.

She didn't correct them. She didn't dare. If they thought she would be alone, they wouldn't let her go.

So, she let the lie stand.

There was a wait for the prescription to be filled at the hospital… the doctors had insisted on that… and then she was free. She was tapping her foot impatiently, while waiting for the lone pharmacist to fill the bottle, when two nurses walked by.

"Ugh," one said. "It has  _ got _ to be a full moon tonight."

"It is," The second nurse confirmed. "It's the Hunter's Moon." The nurse then made some fake ghostly sounds. "OooooooOoooooOooo."

"Save it for Halloween," the first nurse snapped.

"Oh, Judy, I was just trying to make you smile…"

The voices drifted away as the nurses turned a corner, but what they said stayed with Elisa.  **The** **_Hunter's Moon_ ** **? Really?**

Elisa peered at the pharmacists calendar, and there it was. October 26th, 1996. The Hunter's Moon. Elisa grabbed the filled medicine bottle from the pharmacist, and ran down the hall towards the bank of payphones that she had spotted earlier.

She called a cab company to send someone to come and get her, and returned to the waiting room.

Jason was already there, having been released some time ago. Elisa had no other choice than to put her old clothes back on. They were stiff, sand filled and reeked of the river water… but they were better than nothing. She made a mental note to have the sleeping bags that she came in with cleaned, and sent back to Katie and her family.

With the sleeping bags balled up in a trash bag, and her filthy clothes back on, she waited impatiently in the waiting room.

The taxi had just pulled up to the front, when Jason called for her attention.

"Elisa!"

She turned to glare at him, "What?"

He pointed towards the television. There was a newscast on about the Gargoyles, and some kind of fight going on at Saint Damien's Cathedral.

"Where is that?" Jason demanded to know.

"It is where we are going." Elisa said. "Now."

Together, they ran outside to hop in the waiting cab.

The ride felt like it took days, rather than minutes.

There was a gridlock on the way there because of the Gargoyles sightings and the fighting going on. No one was moving.

"Are you kidding me?" Elisa screamed in frustration.

"Sorry miss," the cab driver said. "There is nowhere for me to go."

Elisa dug into her wallet. "I have $50 on me. It's yours if you drive in the bus lane."

"Can't," the cab driver said. "That is illegal, and if they catch me, I would get a ticket larger than that $50 of yours."

Elisa held up her still wet wallet so that he could see her identification and badge. "I am a member of the police force. This is an emergency. If anyone stops you, I will take care of it."

"I dunno," the cab driver waffled.

Jason leaned forward, and glared menacingly at him. "Drive," he ordered in a deep, threatening voice.

"y… yes sir," the driver said. He swerved into the empty bus only lane, and hit the gas.

Elisa collapsed back, in a fit of coughing.

"What did the doctors say?" Jason asked, concern showing in his eyes.

Elisa held out the pill bottle. "Antibiotics to fight off whatever crap was in the water."

"Have you taken any yet?" Jason asked.

Elisa shook her head. "No time," she said.

Jason nodded. He understood. Didn't like it, but he understood.

The taxi made it to within blocks of the cathedral before even the bus lane was closed off.

"This is it," he announced. "It looks like everything for two or three blocks is closed to traffic."

Elisa handed the driver the money for the ride, with a healthy tip. 'Thanks," she coughed.

Jason hit the pavement running, and when Elisa had to stop and gasp for breath, he picked her up and ran with her.

"There!" Elisa said, pointing the a nearby ambulance.

"Are you alright, Elisa?" Jason asked. "Are you in need of medical attention again so soon?"

"No," Elisa said. "They have lights and sirens. They can get us through."

Jason nodded, and carried her to the ambulance. He put her down, and pounded on the side of the vehicle to get attention. The back door swung open as a female attendant climbed out.

"Elisa Maza," Elisa said, holding her badge up. "NYPD. I need to get to the cathedral. Now."

The EMT nodded and helped them inside. "We will do the best we can." To the driver, she called out, "Full lights and siren. We have two NYPD officers here who need through."

"Alright," the driver replied. "It will still take a little bit. There's nowhere for the cars to go."

"Do you have any water?" Jason asked.

The EMT looked confused.

"Detective Maza was involved in an accident this afternoon, and is in need of something to take her medication with." Jason insisted.

"Oh, uh…" The attendant caught on. "Yeah, there are bottles of water in the cupboard above your head."

Jason reached up and grabbed a bottle. "Thank you," he told the EMT. To Elisa, he held out the bottle. "Drink and take your pills."

Honestly, taking her medication was the last friggin' thing on her mind, but for the sake of peace, she did it. Shaking two pills into her palm, she tossed them into her mouth before swallowing the water.

...She was really hating water of any kind right now…

Elisa gagged a little, but got them down. "Ugh", she groaned.

The ambulance pulled up to the edge of the police line, where they had set up the barricades and police tape.

The attendant in the back flung open the doors, and the first people that Elisa saw was her partner, Matt, and an old buddy on the force, Officer Morgan.

"Oh, thank god," Elisa burst out. "Matt, you have to get us in there."

Matt looked surprised, though she wasn't sure if it was because it was her, the ambulance, or the fact that she had Jason with her.

Matt narrowed his eyes at Jason. "Elisa, what…"

"No time, Matt," Elisa cut him off. "Seriously. No time. Get us in there, and we can sort the rest out later."

Matt didn't seem to like it, she could see it on his face, but he waved them through.

By the time they got to the cathedral… or what was left of it… the Hunter's airship had been flown into it, and a good portion of the back was smoking or on fire. There was the sound of a firefight in progress, Gargoyle roars and crashing stones.

"No!" Elisa shouted, struggling out of Jason's grasp. They got past the police line by flashing their badges. They never stopped running, though, so the only way for the police to stop them was going to be shooting them. Elisa knew there was going to be hell to pay if anyone recognized her, but couldn't find it in her to care. She'd worry about it later.

Together, they navigated their way through the rubble and into the main sanctuary. There, the two remaining Hunters were facing off with the Clan.

Goliath had one of the hunters on the ground, his large fists raised and prepared to strike.

"Goliath, stop!" Elisa called out, running towards him with the intent to stop him from doing anything he may regret.

Goliath's head whipped around, his arm freezing in he leapt to his feet. "Elisa, you're alive!" He gripped her forearms, as if he couldn't believe that she was there.

Elisa struggled to tell Goliath as much as she could, as quickly as she could.

Jason approached his siblings, and was trying to talk sense into them.

Suddenly, in the next room, there was a flash of light and Brooklyn cried out in pain.

Goliath put himself in front of Elisa, and moved to help his clanmate. It must have looked as though he was going to attack, because Jon was suddenly aiming at Goliath.

As John pulled the trigger, Jason threw himself in front of Goliath, taking the shot that was meant for the gargoyle leader.

With a cry, Jason fell. "It has to stop," he begged his siblings, before finally passing out.

Elisa urged the Gargoyles to stop whatever foolish plan that Demona had cooked up, and they would see that Jason got help.

As the gargoyles took off, Elisa started doing a fast assessment of injuries. Because it had been a laser weapon that had hit Jason, there was actually very little blood. The heat from the laser must have cauterized the wound. Her concern was internal damage.

"What have I done?" Jon started lamenting. "What have I… they… What have  _ they _ done?" He fired up the boosters in his suit, and began to fly away. "I shall have my revenge."

Elisa watched him long enough to know that he was flying  _ away _ from the cathedral, and not looking to continue the fight here and now.

"Can you lift him with that robot suit you've got on?" Elisa yelled at Robyn over the noise of the confrontation in the next room. Robyn nodded, and gently scooped up her fallen brother.

The noise from next door stopped, and the sudden absence of noise was almost an assault on her ears.

She ran to the doorway, and urged the Gargoyles to leave, quickly. As they climbed out a broken window, Elisa motioned for Robyn to follow her.

Once outside, she heard the sound of approaching helicopters. Robyn and Elisa moved as quickly and carefully as they could towards the police line.

"Oh, thank god!" Elisa called out in relief. The ambulance that had dropped her off was still outside. There was more battle sounds, and finally the sound of helicopters retreating into the distance.

Elisa moved ahead to get their attention, and Matt looked over to see her coming.

"We have an officer in need of help," Matt called, and immediately officers and the EMTs swarmed towards her.

The police surrounded Robyn, weapons drawn, and Elisa couldn't fault them for it. Robyn was still enclosed in her robotic battle armor, and looked like a threat, but with her brother hurt, Elisa knew that she was not as much of a threat as they thought. She waved the EMT's closer.

"We have a GSW to the abdomen." She said as she got closer to the Emergency Techs.

"Is it safe?" the woman said.

"It is," Elisa confirmed. "The police have her surrounded. She isn't hurting anyone tonight."

The EMTs nodded, but were still cautious on approaching the Hunters.

"Where will you be taking him?" Robyn asked.

"Manhattan General," the Male tech answered.

Robyn nodded her understanding, and gently laid her brother on the stretcher. As the EMTs took him away, the police started demanding that Robyn get out of her armor.

Robyn glanced warily to Elisa. "It's alright, Robyn." Elisa said calmly. "Just move slowly, and they will take care of you."

"You will stay with Jason?" She asked.

"I will," Elisa answered. She turned to follow the stretcher, and listened to the police shouting orders at Robyn. Before climbing into the ambulance, she glanced back at the Hunter. Robyn was stripping out of the mechanical armor, piece by piece.

Elisa sighed. Robyn was going to be in for a time of it. After the damage that the Hunters had been behind; the airship that they had flown violating airspace, the illegal weaponry and a few other things that could be thrown her direction in court. She was cooperating with the police, though, so that was in her favor. There was a long road ahead, that was for sure.

Robyn removed the last bit of armor, and was holding out her wrists for cuffs as the ambulance door closed, effectively cutting off her line of sight to the woman.

Elisa turned her attention to Jason. He was the one who needed help right now, and while she hated the acts that the Hunters had done during their time, Jason had placed himself in the line of fire for Goliath. He had already confessed that he was tired of the hunt, and had put himself in mortal danger to atone for his acts against the Gargoyles. Did it make up for  _ all _ of the evil things that the Hunters had done over the years, the centuries? No.

But it was a step in the right direction.

Elisa waited in the hospital's waiting area. Again.

Around 4:00 a.m., the doctor came out and found her.

"Detective?" Dr Sato called.

"Yeah," Elisa coughed and cleared her throat.

"I heard that you were in here earlier," He said briskly. "Have you taken your medicine? While it is admirable that you stayed here for word on my patient, you need to stay ahead of your own medical care as well."

Elisa nodded, and pulled the pills from her pocket.

"Normally, I would not be able to give his information to anyone outside of family, but Mr. Canmore was insistent that you know." Dr Sato motioned for her to follow him. "Mr. Canmore has received a significant wound. The shot went through his abdomen, nicked a few organs, and severed his spine." He stopped beside a drinking fountain, and pointed to it. "Take your antibiotic," he ordered.

Elisa complied without arguing for once. She felt like she'd been pulled through a keyhole, and while the antibiotics were not a magic cure all, it was going to help her from getting worse. Hopefully.

Satisfied that Elisa had followed her doctor's orders, he continued the long walk to Jason's room. "The shot that severed his spine is unlike anything I have seen," Dr Sato admitted. "The ammunition must have been extremely hot for Mr Canmore not to have bled out there on the scene. The shot nicked a few vessels and arteries on its way through his body, but all of the marks were cauterized." Dr Sato removed his glasses, and rubbed the bridge of his nose tiredly. "That most likely saved his life. He will heal, but," Dr Sato put his glasses back on and met Elisa's eyes. "He will never walk again. His spine was completely severed. He has no sensation from the waist down."

Elisa hung her head. She had half expected bad news, but this was going to be very hard on someone as fit and active as Jason.

But… he was alive.

"He is awake," Dr Sato admitted. "He is still a little groggy from the anesthesia, but he has been asking for you."


	9. Chapter 9

Elisa entered the room that Dr. Sato had pointed out.

Jason turned his head her direction. "Hi."

"Hey," Elisa said back.

"Did they tell you?"

Elisa nodded. She relayed the information that she had gotten from the doctor.

He turned his head away from her for a moment, then back.

Elisa took his hand, "I'd like to help you, if you'll let me," She said, "But I have to be honest, there is someone else, who will always come first."

"I understand," He said. "Have they found Jon?"

"No," Elisa admitted. "He and Demona are still out there. Hunting each other."

"And your friends?"

"They're safe. I hope." Elisa said.

"What about Robyn?"

"She voluntarily gave herself over to police custody at the site. That will possibly work in her favor, but it's out of my hands right now."

"And the Gargoyles?"

Elisa shook her head. "I don't know where they are right now." she admitted. "I need to find them to make sure they are alright."

"Go," he urged. "Find your friends."

"I will." Elisa stood. "I meant what I said. I will help you in any way that I can, and I will be back later, after sunrise."

Jason shook his head. "You go home and rest. Give your medicine time to work. There is no need for you to make yourself ill over me."

Elisa nodded. "I will be back later today, then."

With that, she turned and left the room.

The first call Elisa made was to her family. Her father had been worried about her. He had heard of the explosion at the station, and had even gone down to the site to help. He had seen her car and started asking around about her. Luckily, that had been just after Elisa had shown up at the hospital and the other officers had been notified that she was alright.

She asked that he help spread the word that she was safe, and promised to call him back later.

The second call was to Matt.

"Bluestone," he answered.

"Matt, its Elisa," she said. "Do you know where the clan is?"

"Elisa," he hesitated. "I didn't actually see them leave last night, but there was a Xanatos Enterprises helicopter that sped away from the scene. The officers in the police 'copter swear that the gargoyles got into it."

"Damn it," Elisa swore. "So they are with Xanatos? Are you sure?"

"I don't know where else they would be." He admitted. "They aren't at your place. I checked before heading back to the station."

"Thanks Matt." Elisa said. "I am going to head over to the Aerie building, and I will catch you up when I can."

"Hey, don't you worry about me." He said, and she could hear that goofy smile of his in his voice. "Just call me when you can. I let the Captain know what was going on as far as the Clan, and that you weren't feeling very well. She still wants to talk to you about it at some point, but for now she's not expecting you in."

"Thanks Matt."

Elisa hung up the telephone, and headed outside. Cursing again at the lack of car, she flagged down the driver of a taxi who was just dropping someone off at the entrance.

"Where to?" he asked.

Elisa entered the building, stopping at the security desk.

"Detective Elisa Maza." She flashed her badge. "I'm here to speak to David or Fox Xanatos."

"Uh," the guard stammered. "J… just a moment."

**_New guy_ ** , Elisa thought.  **_Great_ ** .

The guard hung up the telephone, and got to his feet.

"Mr Xanatos said that I am to send you up."

Elisa raised an eyebrow. "Well, then, let's go."

The guard used his key to call the express elevator, and used the key again to access the castle level buttons.

"Thanks," Elisa said. Funny, she had been expecting more of a fight.

The elevator was fast, but Elisa was still impatient to get there.

The door opened on the top most level, and revealed a smiling Xanatos. From her past experiences with him, Elisa was mistrustful of that smile.

"Where are they?" Elisa demanded.

"They are up on the parapets, reacquainting themselves with their home," He said. "Follow me."

"I know the way," Elisa snarled.

"That may be, detective," Xanatos said, "But I have a feeling that you have more that you would like to talk about on the way."

"Fine," Elisa said. "Are they safe here?"

"Of course they are safe," Xanatos had the nerve to sound offended. "Goliath just saved the world. More importantly, he saved my son. The least I can do is to reinstate the clan to their ancestral home."

Elisa wasn't buying it. "What's the catch, Xanatos?"

Xanatos waved a hand dismissively. "No catches. No tricks. No strings. The feud is over, Detective." He gestured to the door at the top of the staircase leading to the tower. "He's waiting for you."

Elisa sent him one last doubtful look before completing the trek to the top of the stairs. She paused, took a breath, then opened the door to the shot staircase that led to Goliath's tower.

He was standing there, overlooking the city and his clan members as they took their places for the day, his hair blowing in the brisk October breeze.

He heard her footsteps, and turned to her. "So," he said in that deep, rumbling voice of his, "things have come full circle."

"Somehow, they always do." Elisa said, brushing her hair out of her face so that she could look up at him. She wanted to be able to see his face to judge his reaction. "You know how I feel about you, right?"

He brought his own hand up to tuck her hair behind her ear. "How we  _ both _ feel," he emphasized. "Yes."

"Good," Elisa smiled. Before she could stop herself, she jumped, put her arms around his neck and kissed him.

The sun chose that moment to rise, and froze Goliath's face with a happy smile on his face.

Elisa put her collar up as defense against the cold wind. "Welcome home, Goliath," she said to his now still form. "Welcome home."

She sat there, on the tower above the clouds, and thought about just how much her life had changed in such a short time. Unsure of how long she had been sitting there, but she realized that she should go home. She was tired, and she had a nasty cold brewing.

Xanatos' assistant, and secret member of the Fey, Owen met her at the base of the stairs. "Mr Xanatos wished for me to give you this," he said, holding his hand out. In the center of his palm, there was a printed security card. On it, was her name and picture.

"What is this?" Elisa asked.

"It is the card that will allow you access to the building and the elevator to get to the top, castle floors."

"But, why?"

"As a show of good faith," Owen said. "Mr Xanatos wants you to have full access to the gargoyles. Day or night."

"Uh, huh," Elisa said skeptically. She pocketed the card. Elisa sighed. Now that she knew everyone she cared for was safe, she was feeling every hour she had been awake… not to mention the fall, the swim and the almost dying part of her day. Her clothes were dried to her skin, her hair felt heavy and her throat was gritty.

She walked to the elevator, and pushed the call button.

"Mr Xanatos has taken the liberty of having one of his cars made ready for you," Owen said. "It will take you anywhere that you need to go."

Elisa nodded her understanding, and leaned her face forward against the cold stone wall.

"If you would permit me to make a suggestion," Owen said, "I would recommend that you go back to see a doctor."

Elisa turned her head long enough to glare at him.

Owen was unphased. "Goliath and the clan told us of the events over the last few nights."

"I have the medicine," she said defensively.

"And I am sure you have been taking it," Owen said, pushing his glasses up the bridge of his nose. "However, you do not look like your usual chipper self."

"Chipper?" Elisa said. "Did you really just call me chipper?"

"It seemed appropriate."

Elisa gave a frustrated growl.

"What is appropriate?" came an all too familiar voice.

Elisa stood, and turned to meet Fox Xanatos.

"Oh," Fox said. "You look like you have had better days."

Elisa reached out to punch the down button again. Why was this thing taking so long?

"Hmmm," Fax hummed thoughtfully. "It works better if you use the key card."

Elisa felt an angry heat fill her face. She glared at Owen, who showed no reaction or remorse.

Elisa pulled the card out and looked from it to the control panel.

"Here," Fox pulled the card from her hand, and waved it over the small sensor.

The lights in the buttons lit, and Fox pressed the down button.

Handing the card back to Elisa, Fox hesitated. "You know, you really do not look well, detective."

"Thanks," Elisa said. As if to add insult to injury, her body chose that moment to send her into a coughing fit so bad that had her bending almost in half.

"You know," Fox said, "We have a doctor on staff here for emergencies."

"I'm sure," Elisa gasped, "That you do." Standing upright once more, Elisa took a big gasp of air. "I'm fine."

Fox looked doubtful. "How long have you been coughing like that?"

"Oh, I don't know," Elisa said sarcastically. "Since I fell off the damn Croton River Dam and woke up on the banks of the Hudson River."

"Alright," Fox raised her hands in surrender. "I will stop. But what happens to the clan if you get really sick? Especially now that the Gargoyles have made their presence known."

The doors of the elevator slid open, beckoning her inside. Elisa didn't move, however.

Fox had hit a nerve, and made perfect sense. The thought annoyed Elisa, but she knew it was the truth.

Elisa watched as the doors slid shut once more with longing. She really just wanted to go home, to her own bed. She wanted a shower, clean clothes and a big plate of food.

But Fox had made sense.

"Fine," Elisa ground out. "Call your doctor. Let's get this over with."

Fox smiled. "Just give me a moment to call him."

Fox sauntered down the hall, and was quickly out of sight.

Owen took the hint for once, and left her alone.

Elisa, at a loss for what to do now, leaned back against the wall. She closed her eyes as a wave of exhaustion crashed over her. She honestly could not remember the last time she had slept… and she did not count her brief bout of involuntary unconsciousness.

She heard the elevator motor hum to life, and the sound lulled her into a half sleeping state.

The elevator doors opened, and in walked a young man, probably in his mid twenties. He was taller than Elisa, but not by much. He had a fresh-faced look that was so unlike Elisa had pictured for anyone working for Xanatos. The man turned to walk the opposite direction of Elisa, towards the offices.

**_Speak of the devil_ ** , Elisa thought as Xanatos appeared in the hallway.

"Ah, Dr. James," He said, holding out his hand to the young man. "Thank you for coming on short notice."

"My pleasure," the young doctor replied. "It's about time that you called me for anything. For someone who insisted that he needed a private physician, you all are the healthiest people I know. I am almost embarrassed to be accepting your paychecks for doing nothing."

"What can I say?" Xanatos said with a smile. "It is worth every penny to make sure that my family is taken care of, should the need arise."

The man laughed. "Well, let's see if I can actually earn my paycheck. Who is the patient?"

Xanatos pointed towards Elisa. "The detective over there has had a rough couple of days."

Dr. James turned, startled. He clearly had not seen her when he got off of the elevator, and was stunned to see her there.

"Oh, uh," He stammered. "I am so sorry, Ma'am."

Elisa pushed away from her place on the wall, struggled to stand upright, but the room gave one violent spin. Elisa felt strong arms catch her just before her world went black.

Again…


	10. Chapter 10

Elisa was lost in that hazy time between waking and sleep. Her dreams had not plagued her last night, and she felt better than she had in days. Lazily, she reached her arm out, only to hit cold metal.

"What…" Elisa said, confused. Sleepily, she opened her eyes and realized that she was not in her home. She was not even in her own bed for that matter, and the metal that she'd hit was the metal side rail of a hospital bed. She tried to sit up, but found that her left arm was taped down straight to a board with an IV. Both of her arms were restrained at the wrists with cloth straps.

The room looked like a standard hospital room, complete with beeping monitors and the strong antiseptic smell. Where the hell  _ was _ she? And how did she get here?

Elisa was fully awake now. Confused, but awake.

"Hello?" Elisa called out.

There was a loud  _ thud _ from outside the door, and a disheveled young man entered the room. He was wearing a light blue suit shirt with an identification badge with the Xanatos Enterprise logo on it.

Elisa remembered that Xanatos had called a truce, but Elisa still didn't trust it. The last time a member of her family had "medical care" from Xanatos, they had grown fur and wings. She felt panic rise in her throat, and she started to pull frantically against the restraints.

"Elisa," The young man ran towards her. "Elisa, stop."

"You can tell Xanatos that he can go to hell," Elisa spat.

"What?" He frowned at her.

"Where am I?" Elisa demanded, "And what is this?" she asked, looking pointedly at the IV lines.

"You are in the medical wing on the twentieth floor of the Aerie Building." Dr James hurried to help her with the tape and the board so that she didn't hurt herself. "The IV in your arm is for fluids and antibiotics to fight what sounds a lot like walking pneumonia from any river water that you inhaled."

"Why are my arms strapped down?"

"I had to do it," he admitted. "Every time you started coming to, you started tearing at your IV lines. I was afraid that you would hurt yourself."

Elisa stopped moving as she realized that the doctor was probably telling the truth. He was quickly and efficiently removing the tape from her arm and removed the IV line.

"Now that you are awake, I can remove the restraints and fluids."

"Wait." Elisa stopped him. "How long have I been here?"

"Well," the doctor flushed a little. "When I got to the castle in time for you to lose consciousness, Xanatos helped me bring you down here. That was a little over eighteen hours ago. Without you being awake to fight it, you sicked up quite a bit of water. I was concerned but you seemed to rest better after that. You must have been having some crazy dreams, because every couple of hours you would start thrashing around, begging Goliath to catch you."

Elisa frowned. "I… uh… Did I say anything else?"

"No," he said, putting a bandage over the IV site. He sat back and looked her over. "How do you feel?"

"I feel… Better."

"Not one hundred percent yet, huh?" He said. "Not surprising. It may do you some good to take a few days off of work, detective. You are not contagious, but you don't want to run yourself down again."

Elisa nodded. She didn't have to like it, but she understood the reasoning behind it.

"If you would like, I can contact the precinct for you. Fax them the information to get you the time off."

"I don't know if there would be anyone there to take it," Elisa admitted. "I work at the station house that was attacked the other night. I honestly haven't even been back there since."

"Is there anyone you can call?"

"The captain might still be in the hospital," Elisa said. "I can call my partner. Let him know."

"Go ahead and use the telephone in here to call," the doctor said. "The Xanatos' sent your clothes out to be cleaned. They are in the wardrobe in the corner if you feel like getting dressed."

"Thanks," Elisa said.

The doctor smiled, "Do you feel up to having a visitor?"

"Uh," Elisa said. "Sure?" Who could be here to see her? As far as she knew, no one knew she was even here.

"I wrote you a prescription for antibiotics and codeine to help with your cough. Mr. Burnett picked them up and had them brought to my office." He gestured to the small pair of bottles on the bedside table. "I'll be just down the hall, second door on the right if you need anything."

He stepped outside, and spoke quietly to someone. A familiar rumble met Elisa's ears, and she almost fell out of the bed in shock.

Goliath's familiar form filled the doorway. Elisa had to blink a few times to believe it. What was Goliath doing in here? He couldn't have gotten past the doctor without being noticed.

Goliath ducked through the doorway, closing the door behind him.

"Elisa," he said, walking quietly to the side of the bed. "How are you feeling?"

"Better, I think," Elisa said. "Goliath, how did you get in here?"

Goliath smiled. "The doctor and I have met before," He said. "Xanatos wanted to make sure to have a doctor who knew of the Gargoyles before coming into the castle."

Elisa flopped back down in the bed. "You scared me there, big guy."

Goliath frowned. "I am sorry, Elisa. That was not my intention."

Elisa smiled, and held out her hand. "I know."

Goliath took her hand gently in his. "Elisa," he said quietly, "the night at the dam, I never meant to put you in any danger." He looked down at her small hand in his. "When you went over the edge… when I  _ caused _ you to go over the edge…"

"Goliath," Elisa tried to cut him off, but he continued.

"When I couldn't catch you," He closed his hand around hers, "or find you after, I thought I had lost you forever." He finally met her gaze. "I care deeply for you, Elisa. Human or Gargoyle, it does not matter."

"You know, most of the time that I was trying to get back to the city after getting out of the river, I spent angry with myself. I couldn't believe that I had never taken the time to tell you how I felt," Elisa said.

"I had promised to always catch you, and I failed," Goliath lamented.

Elisa was taken aback. "It was an accident, Goliath. It was just bad luck that I got in the way." Elisa shook her hand that was still in his grasp to get his attention. "Do you hear me, Goliath? It is no one's fault. It just happened, and look, I am fine."

Goliath looked at the medical equipment in the room, doubtfully.

"Ok, ok," Elisa waved her free hand in dismissal. "So I tried to inhale half of the Hudson river, and caught a cold. It's not fatal, I get a couple of days off and all of this is on Xanatos' dime."

Goliath sent her a look that plainly said that he didn't entirely believe her.

"First order of business," Elisa decided, "is that I  _ really _ need to take care of a few things. I need to clean up and get dressed, so go ahead and wait outside with the doctor."

He looked like he wanted to argue, but must have decided against it. He gave her hand a gentle squeeze, then closed the door behind him with a soft click.

Elisa got out of the bed, and as quickly as she could she made her way to the bathroom. After being asleep for so long, being pumped full of fluids, she had  _ really _ needed the bathroom. Rather than the plain, clinical bathroom that she had expected, this room was decked out as if it were a five star hotel.

Plush towels hung on racks and thick rugs adorned the floors… The  _ heated _ tile floors.

Elisa shook her head. She would never get over what people with too much money spent their money on.

After the essentials had been taken care of, she hurried to get dressed. The last thing she wanted was to reunite with the clan with an open-backed gown. Her clothes had indeed been laundered as the doctor had said. Even her leather jacket was clean. The thought of some stranger handling her underwear made her twitch a little, but in the end, she was so thankful to have clean things that she didn't allow herself to dwell on it.

She still needed a shower, but did the best she could with the sink and towels in the bathroom.

She finally felt… well… human. For the first time in days, she was clean, feeling better and had gotten sleep.

A slight sore throat and she wouldn't be running a marathon anytime soon, but all in all she was feeling fine.

Elisa went to the door of the room and opened it. She was greeted by an unexpected room full of humans and gargoyles.

Surprised, Elisa looked around. This was a sight she never thought that she would see; Her parents, her sister Beth, Her brother Talon, and the whole Gargoyle clan were all standing or sitting in the large clinic waiting area.

Talking. They were all sitting around, chatting like it was an everyday occurrence.

"Uh, hi," Elisa said. "Am I late for the party?"

Her name was shouted in almost unison from everyone in the room.

Her parents rushed to their feet, and hurried towards her.

"Elisa," her mother said, clutching her close. "I am so glad to see that you are alright."

"Mom," Elisa protested. "I'm fine."

"Elisa," Peter Maza stepped up. "You scared us, my girl."

"What happened, Elisa?" her mom asked. "The last we knew, you were fine, and then we get a call this afternoon that you are here."

"It is a  _ long _ story, mom." Elisa said, tiredly.

Her mom crossed her arms and gave her daughter  **_the look_ ** . The one that turns kids, no matter their age, back into small children. If her mother decided to tell her that she was grounded, Elisa would have slunk back into her room.

"Is this going to be one of those 'Long Stories' like when you visited me in Africa?" Her mom wanted to know.

Elisa cringed. "Yeah, pretty much."

"Well," Diane huffed. "Let's have it."

"I will tell you everything," Elisa said. "Tomorrow."

Diane Maza opened her mouth to protest, but Peter placed a restraining hand on her shoulder. "Let the girl rest. She's been ill."

Elisa threw her father a grateful look.

"You are not off the hook, though," Peter warned. "We still want to know how you ended up here."

Elisa nodded. "You all look beat. Go home, get some rest, and I will come by in the morning."

"We we will hold you to it," Diane muttered.

"Yes, ma'am." Elisa said.

Elisa saw her parents off, and turned to her brother. "Hey, furball."

"You know," he said, thoughtfully. "You always were a pain in the ass as a kid. it's almost worse now."

"Really, Derek?" Elisa sent him a withering glance. "You had some escapades too, you know."

"Yeah, well," He reached out and gave her a one-armed hug. "I'm glad you're o.k. sis, but next time, can you at least send someone to come and get  _ me _ ? I mean, I understand not telling our parents certain things, but can I at least be let in on the big mystical secrets?"

Elisa looked at him. He had been a handsome man, or so all of her friends had told her. Because of some of the "mysterious" secrets that she had withheld, her brother had walked into a trap. He had been injected with some sort of gene altering compound, turning him into a large panther with wings. He had made the best of the hand he'd been dealt, banding together with other mutates like himself and creating a sanctuary for the homeless and those in need.

Elisa admired him for the strength to overcome something like that.

"Derek," Elisa said quietly, "I never did apologize for my part in what happened to you."

He looked shocked. "You had no part in it, Elisa."

She shook her head. "I did. I could have… no, I  _ should have _ told you the whole story about why I didn't trust Xanatos. Maybe you wouldn't have taken the job and been given that mutagen."

Derek took her by the shoulders and gave her a rough shake. "You stop that. It was my own fault that I ended up like this.  _ I _ chose to take the job with Xanatos, even though you were warning me away from it.  _ I _ chose to destroy the "cure" that Dr. Sevarius created because I didn't trust it." He gave her one more shake to make his point, then bent down to look in her eyes. "I have a purpose now. I'm not just a guy, joining the police force as a pilot and being accused of living in his father's shadow."

It was Elisa's turn to be taken by surprise. "Who accused you of that?"

"No one did, Elisa," He smiled sadly. "It was all in my head, I'm sure, but it was how I felt… How I still feel occasionally. I mean, look at you! You're getting to be pretty well known, even to other precincts in the NYPD, as being this kick ass detective. You aren't just 'Peter Maza's Kid'. Meanwhile, I was just a pilot that just happened to work for the NYPD."

"The old man casts a hell of a shadow, doesn't he?" Elisa muttered.

"That he does." Derek smiled. He lifted his head, and his smile faded somewhat. "I… am… uh," he sputtered, looking at something that Elisa couldn't see behind her. "I am going to take my hands off of your shoulders now. It seems I may have upset someone."

Elisa looked behind her. Goliath was watching them closely, eyes starting to glow with barely contained anger.

Elisa's eyes went from her brother and back to Goliath, confused. Then she sighed.

"Boys, behave," she admonished. "Look, Derek," she turned back to her brother. "Maybe you  _ would _ take the full truth better than mom and dad. I'll tell you what," She turned and motioned to Broadway. "There were three of us there that night, and Broadway is one of them. He can fill you in, and you can help me figure out what to tell mom and dad, OK?"

"Gotcha," Derek said with a salute. "Hey, Broadway," he called out, eagerly. "Is there anything edible around? I'm tired of my own cooking."

"Cooking?" Elisa burst out. "That's what you call it?"

"Well," Derek said, laughing, "It's more along the lines of opening cans and heating the contents."

Elisa nodded. "That sounds more like it. You boys go raid the kitchen."

Derek threw an arm around Broadway's shoulders. "Please tell me that you got to see that detective movie marathon last week…"

**_Guys_ ** , Elisa thought with a wry chuckle. Guys were guys, no matter the species.


	11. Chapter 11

As Derek and Broadway walked off together, Elisa decided to do damage control and talk to Goliath first.

"Hey, big guy," She said. "What's wrong?"

"He should not have treated you so roughly," He muttered. "You have been hurt and ill."

"Is that what this is about?" Elisa laughed. "Derek is my brother. He would never hurt me on purpose."

"But accidents happen," Goliath growled. "He has hurt you before."

"Stop right there," Elisa said. "He didn't have a handle on his abilities yet then, but he does now."

"Be that as it may," He grumbled.

Elisa sighed. "This is going to take some getting used to, isn't it?"

"What do you mean?"

"Us," She said.

Goliath looked at her, and cupped her face. "It is the 'us' that I have no doubts about. I almost lost you, and I could not face that again." He brought his arms around her in an embrace, his wings folding around the both of them.

Elisa laid her head on his chest and sighed. They stayed like that for a few minutes before they both realized that the room had cleared out.

"I guess the clan decided we needed privacy," Elisa said.

"It would seem so."

The sound of running footsteps met their ears.

In an effort to protect her from the unknown, Goliath moved so that Elisa behind him.

Moments later, the door to the waiting area flung open. Dr. James burst into the room in a wide-eyed panic. "You have visitors, Elisa." he warned.

"What? Who?" She asked, coming out from behind Goliath.

"There is a Detective Bluestone and a Captain Chavez on their way up."

"Why are they here?" She wondered.

"It may have been that fax I sent requiring you to have a few days off," the doctor admitted.

"Argh," Elisa said, running her hands down her face. "Alright. First things first, Goliath. Matt wouldn't be a problem, but the Captain…"

Goliath nodded. "I shall return to the castle and wait for you there."

Elisa nodded. "I will be there as soon as I can."

The elevator door closed behind him just as a second set of doors opened. Matt and Maria appeared. Maria was sporting a cane and a walking cast for her broken leg.

"Maza," the Captain barked. "There had better be a damn good reason why I am here, this late at night, in the building owned and operated by two known felons. One of my best detectives is in said building, receiving medical care, and  _ said _ known felons supposedly had a hand in the escape of some sort of mystical creatures last night. "

"Uh," Elisa was stumped. The captain had a point. It  _ was _ rather suspicious.

"Elisa," Matt walked forward. "You look like hell."

"Gee, thanks partner," Elisa said sweetly. "I missed you too."

"Maza," the captain barked.

"Sorry, Cap," Elisa said. "I was in need of some emergency medical care, and Dr. James, was kind enough to bring me here."

"That's another thing," Maria said. "What the hell happened to you?"

Elisa's head fell forward in defeat. It looked like she was going to have to tell the story to someone tonight after all. She rubbed one hand across the back of her neck.

"How much time do you have, Captain?"

"However much time I need," she said, "That is the beauty of being in charge."

"One question," Elisa said. "Are you wanting to know as my boss, or as my godmother?"

Matt looked surprised. "Godmother?"

Elisa looked at Matt. "You know how the captain and my father served on the force together?"

He nodded.

"Well," Elisa shrugged. "Before she became the captain, she was my father's friend and partner. My parents decided that she would be a perfect guardian, should anything happen to them. And, so…"

"As your  _ boss _ ," Maria interrupted, "I need to be able to justify why you are here and need the time off when we don't have the manpower to spare right now." She took a breath. "As your Godmother, I need to know what is going on so that I can be prepared to help you if you need it."

Elisa nodded. Maybe it  _ was _ time to share the Gargoyles with those that she trusted the most.

"Captain," she said, but stopped and started again. "Maria, I have an… interesting group for you to meet that may help to shed some light on the subject."

"I'm listening," she said.

Elisa sighed. "Follow me." She led the way to the elevators, and activated the controls with her new key card.

Maria raised her eyebrows at Elisa. "Why do you have a security key for this place?"

Elisa held up her hand. "That is a part of the long story. Unfortunately," She looked at her watch, "time is a little short right now. Please, be patient with me, and I will explain everything."

Maria nodded. It must be killing her to hold her silence, but she did it.

Elisa pushed the button for the castle level, and the trio rode to the top in silence.

Matt sent his partner a pitying look. "Sorry, Elisa. She insisted… rather forcefully."

Elisa looked back at him and smiled a little. "My only consolation in all of this is that  _ you _ are in as much trouble in this as I am."

He had the good grace to look embarrassed.

"Didn't think of that one, did you?" Elisa poked at him.

He shook his head, a look of dread coming over his face.

Elisa knew the feeling. This meeting could go one of two ways: Maria could be open and accepting of the Gargoyles and the good that they do for the city… Or she could run screaming into the night.

Elisa sincerely hoped for the first option.

The elevator bell sounded, and the gold doors slid open.

"Elisa," Maria said warningly.

"Almost there, Captain." Elisa said. "Just a few more minutes." She turned to Matt, "Can you round everyone up, and have them meet us in the library?"

"Uh, sure," Matt said.

"This way, Maria." Elisa led the way, mindful of Maria's slow pace. They reached the library before anyone else had gotten there, and Elisa helped Maria to one of the tall backed chairs.

The large room was lit only by the light of the waning moon outside and a roaring fire in the fireplace. Most of the room was a maze of shadows, but it was cozy… and one of the few rooms Elisa know that whole clan could fit in that would give them a little privacy.

"Everything really started about two years ago," Elisa started, taking a seat opposite of her friend. "Do you remember the night that there were all of those reports made of firefight and damage done from the castle here? It was only a few days after the construction had been completed."

Maria thought for a moment, then nodded. "I think so."

"That was the night I met Goliath."

Maria opened her mouth to say something, but Elisa stopped her. "Please, just a few more minutes."

Maria crossed her arms impatiently, but kept silent.

"One thousand years ago…" Elisa started. After a very abbreviated version of the Gargoyles history, Maria was left staring at Elisa in shock. "You mean that all of those gargoyle calls that we have been fielding all this time weren't just wackos?"

Elisa shook her head.

"How were they able to remain so well hidden all this time, if they weren't always at the castle?" Maria asked.

Elisa smiled. "They were in the safest place I could think of, until recent events."

Maria shot Elisa a look. "Please tell me they weren't in the clock tower."

Elisa cringed. "Yes, Ma'am."

"I should have known," Maria said, rubbing her forehead. "I found you and Bluestone up on the top floors a few times, but I thought you were… Nevermind."

"What?" Elisa said, finally catching on. "You thought that Matt and I were…"

"It was more logical than you both sneaking up there to take care of living Gargoyles," Maria shot back.

Elisa let out a short laugh. "Oh, boy. Matt is going to  _ love _ this."

There was a knock at the door, and the man in question stuck his head in. "Are you ready?"

"As we'll ever be, Matt." Elisa said.

He nodded, opened the door fully and motioned to the clan. One by one, led by Goliath, they entered the room.

Elisa wondered if they should call Doctor James in, because Maria was looking a little pale. To try to ease Maria's obvious distress, Elisa walked over to the clan.

"Captain Chavez, I would like to introduce you to the Gargoyle Clan of Castle Wyvern." Pointing to each in turn, Elisa introduced the clan members. Each member, in turn, bowed to Maria in respect.

"It is nice to finally meet you," Goliath said. "We have heard much of you."

Elisa gave the captain credit. She recovered from shock quickly.

"It's nice to meet you all." She said. She started to get up, but Hudson, seeing the cane, motioned for her to stay seated.

"What happened to your leg, lass?" He asked.

Maria explained about the damages to the station house, and the few injuries that had resulted from the attack.

The clan was visibly upset, and Elisa hurried to add her two cents. "It was those damned Hunters. The Canmore siblings didn't care who they hurt." She said. "They had been leaving destruction in their wake wherever they went. Luckily, no one was killed at the station house. Other places weren't so lucky."

Maria nodded, her face serious. "So that explains the reason for the attack, but what happened to you? You were at the hospital visiting me soon after the attack, and you were fine. Oh, you were pissed off, but unharmed. Then you dropped off the radar again, and I don't hear anything until your doctor contacted me."

Elisa sighed. "There was an incident with the Hunters, and I ended up in the Hudson River for a while."

"That is not exactly how it happened," Goliath admitted.

"Goliath," Elisa said in a soft warning tone.

"She deserves to know," Goliath said softly. "If she is trustworthy enough to bring her here, is she not worthy of the truth?"

Elisa hung her head. "You're right. I know you're right. I just don't want to talk about it all."

Goliath nodded. "I will tell it if you would like."

"Alright, Goliath. You win," Elisa said. She placed a hand on his arm, "No blaming yourself for anything though."

"It started after the attack on the clock tower," Goliath started. "You see, I.."

"Hey, sis, is there a party, and no one tell me? Where did everyone go?"

"Oh, God. Derek," Elisa burst out. Any distraction was a welcome one. She honestly didn't want to remember the fight on the dam, or the resulting fall. Just the thought gave her the shivers.

"Derek?" Maria asked. "Where? I haven't seen him in a while now."

"Uh…" Derek's voice trailed off. "Hi Aunt Maria."

"Aunt?" Goliath asked Elisa.

"It is what we grew up calling Maria." Elisa shrugged.

"Derek, I can barely see you standing in the shadows like that." Maria pointed out.

"Uh… Aunt Maria?" Elisa said slowly. "About Derek…"

Derek sighed. "Maria, do you want the quick version or the long one?"

"Let's go ahead with the quick version," Maria said. "There have already been a lot of drawn out stories tonight."

"Alright," Derek said, stepping into the light.

Maria leapt to her feet, almost losing her balance in her surprise. Hudson was the closest to her and reached out to steady her until she was able to regain her footing.

"Derek?" Her hands covered her mouth even as the tears started gathering in her eyes.

"Aw, man," Derek said. "Don't you start crying. You're the tough police captain."

Maria straightened her spine, and visibly got her emotions under control. "You Mazas," She snapped. "I don't know what to think of you all anymore."

Elisa couldn't help it. She had to laugh.

Maria sent her a scathing look. "What is so funny?"

"Sorry," Elisa said.

Derek started snickering as well.

Maria turned on him. "Please tell me that your parents know about this."

"They do," Derek said. "It took them a little while longer than you to take it all in, but we're good now."

"Good?" Maria sent a pitying look at Goliath. "They're good now. Are you sure you really want to claim the Maza family? They are a pack of crazy people."

"Oh, Goliath knows." Elisa said. "He's met the whole family now."

Maria shook her head. "And you never said a word. I never had any idea that you were keeping so many secrets."

Elisa shrugged. "They were never my secrets to tell. The Gargoyles had to remain a secret for their own protection. Later on, Derek and the others had to stay hidden as well."

Maria held up her hands. "No more. I don't think I can process any more tonight."

"Understood," Elisa said. It really was a lot to take in at once, and so far Maria had muscled her way through it like a champ.

"It is almost time for the sun to rise," Goliath reminded everyone.

"There is one more thing, Maria." Elisa said. "It is truly something that you will not forget."

"Let me help ye, Lass," Hudson said, offering his arm to Maria.

Elisa went with Goliath, while Maria allowed herself to be led to the lower part of the tower with the rest of the clan.

The sky was just starting to lighten when Goliath and Elisa reached the tower.

"Are you sure that it is safe for you all to be out in the open right now?" Elisa asked, worried.

"Xanatos will watch over us," Goliath said, confidently. "He has many weapons here at the castle to protect his son, the castle and us as well."

Elisa nodded. "I guess…"

"Elisa," Goliath interrupted, running a gentle hand down the side of her face. "Do not worry about us any more today. You must rest and give your medicine time to work."

Elisa leaned her head into his hand for a brief moment, reveling in the warmth of his palm. At the first crackling sound of his stone skin appearing, Elisa took a step back.

Goliath had just enough time to make it to his usual, ferocious pose before he turned to stone for the day. Judging from the startled yell from below, Maria had just witnessed it, herself.

Elisa smiled, remembering the first time that she had seen it, herself. Sometime soon, she should invite Maria over for the evening show. Watching the gargoyles break free of their stone skin was something a person just had to see to believe.

Turning, Elisa made her way back down the winding stairs of the tower, back to the main common area. She met Matt and Maria by the elevators.

"So," Maria said slowly, "Where does this leave things?"

Elisa shrugged. "They are not here to hurt anyone, Maria. They have been helping this city for a while now."

Maria shook her head. "No, I realize that now. However," Maria looked up at Elisa, all sternness and every inch the police chief. "They are not being viewed well right now, Elisa."

"What?" Elisa asked.

"When was the last time you saw the news?" Matt asked.

"I, uh…" Elisa paused. "I saw the news from the Saint Damien's Chapel the night of the attack when I was at the hospital. That's how I knew to go there."

Maria frowned at her. "What were you in the hospital for that time?" She held up a hand, "No, don't tell me. It might be better that I don't know."

Elisa smiled tiredly. "That was after I got back to Manhattan from my involuntary swim."

"I never did get to hear that story, and perhaps its better that I haven't." Maria sent her a disgusted look. "We have to work on you following orders, Elisa."

"Yes, ma'am."

"And we  _ are _ going to talk about how you kept the Gargoyles to yourself all this time."

"Yes, Ma'am."

"Take the rest of the night off. Go  _ home _ ," Maria emphasized. "Get some rest. I will do my best to get you and Bluestone assigned to the same temporary station until ours is repaired and safe to be in again."

"Thank you," Elisa said. "I will be back at work tomorrow."

"Take care of yourself, Maza," Maria said with a small wave.

As Maria entered the elevator, Bluestone moved to follow. "Rest up, Elisa. We are probably going to be working double shifts for a while. I will pick you up for work tomorrow, and we can get your car out of the impound in the morning."

"The impound?" Elisa exclaimed. "You couldn't get it out for me earlier?"

"I could have," he admitted. "But that means that I wouldn't get to drive for once."

"Thanks, Matt." Elisa said sarcastically.

"Hey, any time."

"Uh, huh," Elisa said, a sneaky smile making her way across her face.

Matt looked worried. "What is that look for?"

"Hey, Maria," Elisa called out, never taking her eyes off her partner. If she was going to be stuck paying the lot fees to get her car out of the impound, Matt was going to pay for it in his own way. "Has Matt told you that over the last year, he has known about the gargoyles too?"

"Bluestone," Maria snapped. "Get in here."

Matt sighed, and hung his head like a child about to be reprimanded by their teacher.

Elisa chuckled. "See you tomorrow, Matt."


	12. Chapter 12

Late that afternoon, Elisa woke in her own bed, wearing her own clothes. Stretching lazily, she reveled at being in familiar surroundings. She was actually feeling quite a bit better, with only a lingering twinge in her throat.

She got up, treated herself to a shower, only getting out when the hot water ran out. It was heaven.

After days spent in the same clothes, even if they had been cleaned, she decided. She reached in her closet, and pulled out a comfortable red shirt and a pair of black jeans.

After putting herself together, she set out to get something to eat. She always had a well stocked kitchen in case the gargoyles stopped by for dinner, but nothing sounded good to her. She settled on warming up a can of soup and making a sandwich.

Elisa noticed the lack of sound, and normally she loved her quiet time, but tonight the silence was bothering her.

**_Too much time spent surrounded by noise_ ** , Elisa mused.

She hit the power button, and went back into the kitchen for a glass of water.

"This is Luke Payne for ILG News," came the newscaster's voice. "The reports are still rolling in of Gargoyle sightings, since they were thrust into the public eye after the attack on Saint Damien's Chapel."

Elisa's head snapped up. She reached dove for her remote, and changed the channel.

"...WVRN coverage of the Gargoyle menace…"

**Click**

"...for YNN news. Gargoyles are real? That is what…"

**Click**

"...Tonight, on Nightwatch…"

**Click**

"...reporter on the site of the destroyed Saint Damien's Chapel…"

Elisa flipped through the channels. Most of the news channels were reporting about the Gargoyles, so Elisa settled on a loud comedy sitcom.

She had just finished cleaning her dinner plates in the sink, when there was a knock on her door.

Elisa grabbed her coat, holster and weapon. Slipping them on, she answered the door to find a very disgruntled Bluestone on her doorstep.

"That was playing dirty," Matt groused. "The Captain called me to the carpet last night."

Elisa cocked her head to the side and smiled sweetly. "Really?"

"Paybacks are hell," Matt warned.

"Hey, I didn't tell her about the mutates or the fact that there is a full set of clones beneath the city."

Matt looked thoughtful. "That's true. How are the clones these days?"

"They matured enough to be able to go out on their own." Elisa said with a smile. "They are working at creating their own version of the Labyrinth deep in the heart of Queens. Near enough for us to keep an eye on them, but far enough for them to have a little independence….But maybe we should keep that bit of news to ourselves…" Elisa suggested carefully.

"Deal," Matt said.

Together, they made their way back down to the street and to Matt's car. Elisa took one look at it and cringed. "Jesus, Matt. Do you  _ live _ in here?"

Matt looked at the car and shrugged. "I have just spent a lot of time in it patrolling, lately."

"Ok, I get that," Elisa said, wrinkling her nose, "But couldn't you throw the food containers and cups away? With as much fast food as you eat, you should weigh 300 pounds by now."

"Hey," Matt said, defensively. "If I am not allowed to complain about your driving, you can't complain about my car."

"Fine," Elisa said. "Let's hit the road."

They drove most of the way in silence, until they neared the 19th precinct station house where they had been temporarily assigned.

"When do you think we can get back into our station," Elisa asked.

"I don't know," Matt replied. "The going theory is that they will remove the clock tower part of the building rather than try to rebuild it. From there, it is a matter fixing ceilings and walls, replacing equipment and furniture."

Elisa nodded. She was disappointed that they wouldn't be rebuilding the clocktower, but understood the practicality of it.

They were still about a mile from the station when a police cruiser sped up behind them, and signaled them with lights and siren to pull over.

"Are you speeding?" Elisa asked, stunned. He was so straight-laced about traffic laws, that his normal driving speed was usually just shy of five miles per hour under the speed limit.

"No," Matt said, glancing at his speedometer. He pulled over to the side of the road, expecting the cruiser to drive past.

It pulled over behind them instead. The officer in the passenger seat rushed over to Matt's car.

"What is going on?" Elisa asked.

The officer leaned down and spoke quickly to her. "Sorry to stop you like this, but are you Detective Elisa Maza?"

"Yeah," Elisa said, taken aback. "What is going on?"

"Sorry, detective," He said, opening her door. "I don't know the details. All I know is that there is a situation brewing, and Captain Maria Chavez put out an emergency APB that we were to stop you before you got to the station. She said that any officers who were able to catch up with you were to give you a ride to anywhere but the station house."

"What?" Elisa asked. "Where should I go?"

"I don't know, detective," the officer said. "The Captain asked you to call her at the 17th precinct and let her know where you are."

"Alright." Elisa said. She sent Matt an apologetic glance, then opened her car door. She was escorted into the rear of the police cruiser.

"Hello, detective," the driver said, cheerfully. "Where can we take you?"

"That depends," Elisa said. "Can you tell me what is going on?"

"Well," the driver hesitated.

"Officer," Elisa said, impatient now, "You need to tell me what is happening. If it is important enough that you all had to come and find me, it is obviously something big. I need to know if it is safe for me to go home, or if I need to go somewhere and stay with a friend."

The officer sighed. "There is a large crowd of protesters in front of the station, and some are out for blood."

The passenger turned to look at her. "From what I heard, it sounds like you were seen running into that Gargoyle mess at the chapel the other night. These "concerned citizens" have put you and them together, and they want your badge."

"What?" Elisa burst out. "Are you kidding me?"

"Unfortunately not," the driver said. "The Captain was concerned enough for your safety that she sent us out after you. I can't say that I blame her, after what happened at your station."

"Yeah," Elisa said, resting her forehead against the window.

"So, where to?"

Elisa gave them the address of an apartment building a few blocks from the Aerie building. She could walk from there.

Elisa got an idea of why the captain was so worried. They had to drive past the station house where the protest was happening, and it was almost two solid blocks lined with protesters. There was a division to be seen, some were pro gargoyle and some against. For the moment, they seemed distracted by each other. Lots of loud voices and raised fists to be seen. Luckily, no one bothered to look at the police cruiser, so Elisa felt safe looking around.

Some of the signs held generic pictures of medieval gargoyles on castles, some held recent still images from the news.

The biggest shocker was that a few of the signs had a picture of herself on them. Not just any picture, but the one from her police file.

"Damn it," Elisa swore. "There's a leak."

"That's the theory," said the driver. "Otherwise, how would they know what station you were being sent to, when it was supposed to be a random assignment? Everyone was sent to whatever station had the room to accommodate the extra people."

"Fantastic," She muttered. "If there is that big of a leak, I wonder what's going on outside of my apartment."

"We can do a drive-by if you want," The driver offered.

"We had better," Elisa said.

Ten minutes later, Elisa had been urged to duck down in the back seat as the cruiser crawled through the mass of people outside. To their credit, the officers in the cruiser called back to their station to have someone come and do some crowd control, but it was obvious that Elisa could not go to her apartment.

At least, not now.

"Forget the original address," Elisa said. "Take me to the subway station on West 23rd street." She could go underground with Talon for the time being, and contact people from there. She couldn't risk being seen entering the Aerie Building right now.

**_Crap…_ **

"The least they could do is spell it right," Maggie growled, turning the television off. "Who thought that Gargoyles was spelled g-a-r-g-o-i-l-s?"

"I don't know," Elisa sighed, disgusted. She sank farther into the worn chair she had planted herself in as soon as she had gotten to the Labyrinth. Because she was planning on staying for a while, she had surrendered her gun to Derek since there were no weapons allowed. She went ahead and gave him her badge for safekeeping as well, and both were safely ensconced in the one lockable room that the mutates had left intact. She felt naked without them, and felt the need to wallow in her own private pity party.

She had called Maria, and that call had been about what Elisa had been expecting. Elisa was in trouble. Threats had been made against Elisa as well as the NYPD as a whole.

As hard as Maria was trying to get things cleared up, it would be better for everyone if Elisa stayed away for a day or two in order to ensure safety for her and her fellow officers. Maria commended Elisa for the wisdom of not going to the Aerie as well, so as not to draw any unwanted attention to the clan.

Maria assured her, however, that she was pulling every string and calling in every favor to get as many people working on the leak within the department as possible.

Instead of reassuring Elisa, it just made her feel worse.

"Well, I just got off of the phone with dad," Derek announced as he entered the room. "Thanks to his friends at the force, the picketers have been removed from their lawn, but there's not much they can do about them being on public property."

Elisa held her head in her hands. "What a mess," she lamented. "Mom and Dad must  _ love _ this."

"Hey," Derek said, placing a hand on her shoulder. "They know about the gargoyles and you, so it's not like they got blindsided by this."

"That's not the point, Derek," she said. She let her hands fall limply to her lap. "The point is that they don't need to be harassed about this. They don't need to be put in the position of defending me to anyone, let alone a bunch of wackos who have nothing better to do with their time than to stand around waving signs."

"They aren't even that original," Derek put in.

"Yeah," Elisa sighed.

"Hey," Derek frowned at her. "Are you sure I can't take you to the castle? The clan will worry."

Elisa shook her head. "I already called Matt. He's going to stop by and let them know I'm alright. He's going to go feed Cagney too, since I probably shouldn't go back to the apartment tonight."

"Why can't you?" Derek said. "You are a pro at undercover work. Get dressed up, grab a wig, and off you go."

"Maybe."

"Derek," Maggie broke in. "I need some help with a situation out in the Labyrinth for a minute."

"Uh, sure," Derek answered. He gave his sister's shoulder a squeeze and left the room with Maggie.

"What's going on?" Derek asked as Maggie closed the door behind her.

"Derek, I think she just wants to distance herself from it all for a little while," she said. "She has had a crazy thing happen tonight, and she feels like she can't even go home. Even your parent's house or the castle seems out of her reach right now. Give her a little room so she can breathe."

"This is just so unlike Elisa," Derek mused. "She has never been one to back away from a fight, especially when it has to do with the job."

"I have never known someone like Elisa." Maggie said. "Even with what she sees everyday, she's always trying to find the good in people. She truly believes that she can do anything, except she couldn't stop this. The Gargoyles can take care of themselves...for the most part… but she has taken their welfare on as her personal responsibility. Now their existence is out in the open, and the whole city seems to have made it clear that they want the gargoyles dead." Maggie shook her head sadly. "Not only that, but Elisa's picture and information is out in the open as a 'Gargoyle sympathiser'. They are going after her coworkers, friends and family now, and she can't control this. And after what she experienced today, things may never be the same. She lost a little of her faith in people. She just needs to find a way to get it back."

"What can we do to help?" Derek asked.

"We will be here for her." Maggie said.

Derek nodded thoughtfully. "You are right."

"We should contact the gargoyles. What if they go out looking for her when they see the news?" Maggie asked. "It's one thing to talk to Matt, but it's another to hear people openly calling for Elisa's blood. Goliath would go on the warpath," Maggie pointed out, "and you know I'm right. They could get hurt, and Elisa would never forgive herself for that."

Derek nodded. "I'll go to the castle myself."

"Sunrise will be coming soon, so you will need to be quick, but I need you to be careful, Derek. This city is out for Gargoyle blood, and anyone in the air could be hurt." Maggie nodded. "I will stay nearby, in case Elisa needs something."

"Thank you."

Derek reached out and held her close. After a moment, he pulled away and began running for the surface access.

Once above ground level, Derek made his way across the city as quickly as he could, keeping to the rooftops as much as possible to remain hidden. Maggie had been more right than she probably knew. The city was crawling with people… more so than usual… and a good share of them were randomly firing at anything above their heads that moved.

Derek was happy to finally get to the castle, and almost dreaded the flight back. He landed in the courtyard and rushed inside.

"Whoa," Fox said as she almost ran into him. "Where is the fire?"

"Please tell me that the clan is here."

Fox frowned. "Of course. We all saw the news about the gargoyles protests. They discussed it, and decided that it was a good idea to stay home. Why?"

"There is a bit of a problem," Derek said. "Where are they?"

"They are in the library," Fox said, quickening her pace to keep up with him. "Derek, what's going on? Obviously there has been trouble... is it going to come knocking on our door?"

"If it hasn't been here yet, you may be safe." Derek admitted. "That's part of what I need to talk to the clan about."

Fox nodded. "Is it a private thing, or do you mind David and I sitting in on it."

"You may as well come with me," Derek said, and continued to the library.


	13. Chapter 13

They made it back to the Labyrinth with a little less than an hour to spare before sunrise.

Derek found that Elisa had fallen asleep in the chair where he had left her. She had curled into a protective ball, turned sideways in the seat, her knees clutched to her chest.

She had turned the television back on to the news station. They had moved on to a different story for the moment, but the gargoyles were a sensational story that was being repeated about once an hour. Derek turned it off.

He turned to the large gargoyle behind him. "You are welcome to stay as long as you want," Derek said softly so as not to wake his sister. "Just don't tell her that I'm the one who brought you here."

Goliath nodded his understanding.

Convinced that his sister was in good hands, Derek left to find Maggie and tell her what was happening.

Goliath knelt down beside Elisa where she slept curled up in the chair. According to the news, the city had gone crazy with the fear of the unknown.

From Derek, Goliath had found out that Elisa was a convenient mark for some of that fear, her name and picture used as a target for people to focus on. It was serious enough that Elisa had been told to stay away from the job that was so important to her.

Not only that, but it sounded as if one of her own had violated her privacy and had passed along not only her picture but the addresses of herself and her family. She was so afraid of bringing attention to the clan, that she had chosen to retreat to the underground sanctuary rather than come to the castle. She did not even contact the castle to tell the clan, because she hadn't wanted them to leave with the madness sweeping the city.

Goliath fought the urge to growl in anger. Elisa had given up so much for the clan when they had needed help, but there was little that they could do to help her.

Elisa's face creased in her sleep, as if whatever she was seeing in her dreams was disturbing her in some way. She jumped in her sleep, and cried out once. Goliath could not stop himself from gathering her close. Elisa fought his hold, for just a moment, but then she threw her arms around his neck and clung close.

"Elisa?" He said quietly, unsure she was awake.

"I fell," Elisa murmured. "You caught me."

Goliath was troubled. Elisa was dreaming of falling. How often had she dreamt of falling when he hadn't caught her? Had it only been since the accident at the dam, or had it been longer?

"Always," He said. As gently as possible, without loosening his hold on her, he sat down and placed her on his lap, content to hold her.

If she was dreaming of falling, he wanted to be the one to catch her.

Elisa woke feeling more tired than when she had nodded off. She was getting really tired of not waking up in her own bed, that was for sure. Today, she woke up on a cot, facing a concrete wall in a dark corner of the labyrinth.

She groaned and buried her face in the pillow. She'd given in to a pity party last night, but she was done with that. She was more angry than anything, and she wanted to be the one to track down the leak in the department. With that decision made, she moved to get up…

That was when she realized that it wasn't an unlit corner that she was in. It was actually a small, well lit room, but she was sleeping in the shadow of Goliath. He was facing away from her, Standing at his full height, but he had held his wings in such a way as to shield her from view.

Elisa was torn between amusement and annoyance. It was a sweet gesture, but it also required her to climb over his stone form in order to leave her cot.

She stood on her cot, but still had to do a few hops to get a good enough grip on his stone figure to pull herself up and over.

She was half over one shoulder when Maggie walked by the open doorway. Maggie paused in mid step, hesitated and backed up to look in the room again.

Maggie started to laugh. She simply couldn't help it.

"Har, har," Elisa said. "Maggie, can you help me? I really need to pee."

Maggie, still laughing, rushed forward to help Elisa.

"Thanks," With her feet finally on solid ground, Elisa stretched and bent from side to side to loosen up. "What time did Goliath get here?" Elisa asked.

"It was around 5 o'clock this morning," Maggie said. "He insisted on sitting with you all night, and wanted to make sure you were protected during the day." She chuckled, "The first time I walked by and found him like that with you behind him, I  _ wondered _ how you were going to get out of there."

"Is the rest of the clan here?" Elisa asked.

"No," Maggie said. "It was just Goliath."

Elisa frowned. "How did he know to come here?"

Maggie was suddenly very interested in how the fur on her arm was lying.

"Maggie," Elisa said warningly, drawing out the last syllable.

Maggie heave a big sigh. "Oh, alright. I sent Derek over to the castle to let the clan know what was going on. Derek came back  _ with _ Goliath." Maggie shrugged. "Derek swears that he told the clan to stay put. He also swears that Goliath was very…  _ insistent _ on coming along."

Elisa nodded in understanding. "He can be a little  _ too _ stubborn, sometimes."

"Do you have anything that you need to do today?" Maggie asked.

"There is a few things that I have to do," Elisa said. "I really hope that all of the excitement has died down enough that I can go by my apartment and at least feed Cagney, and then I need to run down to Manhattan General hospital. I made a promise to someone that I really have got to keep."

Maggie nodded. "If you would like, I can arrange for a guide to help you navigate the tunnels so that you can keep your low profile."

Elisa thought about it, and decided that it may be for the best. "I don't have all day to walk the tunnels, though."

Maggie grinned. "Did your brother not tell you about his new toy?"

"No," Elisa said, crossing her arms. "What did he get his hands on now?"

Maggie smiled. "You are going to love it."

The "new toy" ended up being a souped up ATV that he had been working on for faster access and travel through the tunnels. He drove it like a wildman, anticipating the turns and reacting with reflexes that only an experienced pilot could have.

Elisa could only put her arms around his chest, hold tight and pray that they made it in one piece.

If she had walked, it would have taken her all day to navigate the tunnels to get across the island to where she needed to go. With the ATV and guide, that time was dramatically shorter

...If they made it there alive.

Derek laughed as he made another tight turn.

"If we live through this," Elisa had to shout to be heard over the echoing growl of the motor, "I may never speak to you again."

"Promises, promises," Derek taunted. "If you never speak to me again, how will you ever nag me?"

Elisa bumped his shoulder with her head. "Always the comedian."

When they had reached their destination, Elisa's ears were ringing. If not for the lack of movement, she would swear the the engine was still going.

Elisa looked at her brother skeptically. "I'm not going to find out that this souped up mini hot rod is stolen, am I?"

"Maybe," Derek admitted. "But we took it off of some really bad guys."

Elisa shook her head. "Where did  _ they _ get it?"

"That's why it might be stolen."

Elisa bowed her head in defeat. "You got me there."

"Want me to hang around and give you a ride back?"

"No," Elisa said. "I'm not sure I ever want to get back on that monstrosity. I'm going to dig into my bag of undercover goodies, and see if I can get myself around topside."

Derek nodded. "If anyone can do it, you could. If you need help, though…"

"I know how to get a hold of you." Elisa confirmed. "Just do me a favor, and wait until I'm out of earshot before you start that thing up again."

Derek gave her a smart ass salute, "Just make sure to listen for the train to pass, before you step out there. The wind from the trains are killer."

Elisa put her hand on the door. If she couldn't  _ hear _ the train, she could at least feel the vibration. Once a train had passed and Elisa knew she had a few minutes to get to the platform before the next train arrived, Elisa opened the door and made her way through.

To Derek's credit, he waited until the door was  _ almost _ closed before turning the engine on his mini death machine.

Elisa feared for her hearing. It was never going to be the same.

She kept her head down, tried to make herself less visible. There were still some stragglers outside of her apartment building, but they seemed occupied waving their signs at passing vehicles and spouting their anti gargoyle rhetoric rather than paying attention to who was coming or going from the building.

Elisa let out a sigh of relief once the outside security door closed behind her. She had gotten past them, and that was the first hurdle.

She normally took the stairs as just a small extra bit of exercise, but today she wanted to take the easy way. She hit the elevator call button, and rode the car her apartment.

There was a bright yellow notice posted to her door. Apparently, the scene outside had disturbed the other tenants so much, that she was being "asked" to move.

She had thirty days to vacate.

**_Fan - Freaking - Tastic_ **

Elisa jammed her key in the door and forcefully shut the door behind her. " _ What else can happen?"  _ Elisa raged to herself.

A plaintive cry sounded from her bedroom as a sleepy Cagney wandered in.

Elisa put a large bowl of cat kibble in his bowl, washed and refilled his water bowl, then sat for half an hour giving him some personal attention.

" _ What am I going to do?"  _ Elisa wondered. She had lived in this place for five years, and now had thirty days in which to find a new place to live that she could afford on her savings since she wasn't sure when she'd be able to go back to work. A place that not only accepted pets, but one that had access for the Gargoyles to come and visit or rest for the day.

With a sigh, Elisa got to her feet. She still had things to do.

" **_And miles to go before I sleep,"_ ** Elisa thought, quoting Robert Frost.

She went to her closet where she'd stashed some extra wigs and such from her undercover cases. The first few times that she had been called for last minute undercover cases, she had no items to change her appearance enough to not be recognized. She had needed to stop at the station to beg for disguises or gone to stores to buy them herself in those emergency situations. She learned to always keep some things handy for just such an occasion.

She chose her short blonde wig, baggy sweats that had the name of a local community college and some black rimmed glasses. A stocking cap topped off the look, and she was almost unrecognizable to herself.

She packed a backpack with a few changes of clothing, and was ready to go.

"Sorry Cagney," Elisa said to the feline. "I'll be back as soon as I can."

With only  _ slightly _ better restraint than she'd had when she entered, and no matter how tempting, she did not slam the door on her way out.


	14. Chapter 14

Elisa flagged down a taxi a few blocks from her apartment, and took it to Manhattan General Hospital.

The ride was blissfully uneventful, and she was able to get into the hospital unmolested by anyone. She stopped at the volunteer desk, and got the room number for where Jason had been put now that he was out of the recovery from surgery. She made her way to the fifth floor, and past the nurses station. She was pleasantly surprised that there were no police stationed outside of his room, being that he was a criminal and would be taken into custody as soon as the doctors deemed him healthy enough to leave. They probably weren't too worried about him making a break for it. He couldn't go anywhere without being noticed.

He had a private room, and that was probably for security purposes as well. It wouldn't do for him to have a sympathetic room mate who could potentially help him escape.

For Elisa's purposes, however, the private room was just dandy. She crept in and shut the door.

"Hello?" Jason called. "Who is there?"

"It's me, Jason," Elisa said, taking her wig off as she approached the bed.

"What's with the getup?" He asked.

"I seem to be public enemy number one lately," Elisa said. "Someone put two and two together, and I am the human target of the anti Gargoyle groups."

"What?" He asked, concerned.

Elisa shrugged. "There is a leak in the department, and my part of the Saint Damien's mess came out. My picture is plastered everywhere, and they have set up residence outside of my apartment, my parent's house and the station."

Elisa sank into a chair. She lifted the wig so that Jason could see it. "I had to go incognito just to feed my cat."

"I'm sorry, Elisa," Jason said. He sounded sincere, and Elisa was inclined to believe him.

"Nothing to be done now, but wait it out," She said. "These people will find something better to do with their time soon enough. Some other cause will catch their attention, and they can leave me and the Gargoyles alone."

"I hope it is soon," Jason said. "For all of your sakes."

**_So do I_ ** , Elisa thought.

"Well," she said, trying to brush it off. "I promised that I would help you any way that I could, so where do we start?"

"I suppose I should start with getting a lawyer."

Elisa returned to the Labyrinth with only minutes to spare before sunset. She briefly debated crawling back over Goliath and into the cot, but figured it was just a waste of time. He would know that she had gotten up because she had changed clothes, for goodness sake.

At the first cracking sound of stone skin, she shielded her face with an arm. The pieces were usually small enough that they didn't hurt, but this was the first time that she had been in this small of a space when they went flying and didn't want to be hit by any ricocheting bits.

Goliath emerged with his usual stretch and roar. It was an amazing display on any normal night, but downright deafening in the small room.

Free of his stone sleep, Goliath draped his wings around his shoulders and looked at Elisa quizzically.

"Why do you feel the need to wear a wig?" He asked.

"Oh," Elisa said absently, "I actually forgot I had it on." She reached up and removed it, shaking her long hair out from its confines.

"Yes," Goliath said, frowning. "But why did you need it?"

"I had to go a few places today." She said. "I had to go to my apartment to get a few things and feed Cagney. Then I had to stop by the hospital and see Jason."

Goliath's frown deepened. Why had she felt the need to go see the Hunter?

"Relax, Big Guy," Elisa said with a small smile. "I promised him that I would help in any way that I could, after he tried to stop his siblings and saved your life. And mine." She added. "I hadn't been back to see him since he had surgery, and this is one situation that couldn't wait if I am going to be of any help."

"What can you do?" Goliath asked.

"Advice, mostly," Elisa admitted. "Though he didn't take much of it today. He has opted to use a public defender, which I think is a mistake but it is his decision."

"Why is it a mistake?"

"A public defender is a lawyer who works for cheap or free.  _ Most _ of the time, they are fresh out of law school with little to no experience in trial law. If he wants any chance at getting a lighter sentence for the Saint Damien's mess, especially since he was not even there for most of it, he needs a more experienced criminal lawyer. It's not as if he doesn't have the money," Elisa huffed. "Look at the amount of technology and gadgets that the Hunters had. Those cost a pretty penny."

"Did you ask Jason?" Goliath asked.

"I tried," Elisa asked. "He didn't want to talk about it, and when I tried to find out, he kept changing the subject."

"He must have his reasons," Goliath reasoned.

"Yeah," Elisa said. "Well, I need to go and talk to Derek for a minute before something else explodes today."

"Explodes?" Goliath asked.

"Sorry," Elisa said. "Figure of speech. It means that a lot of crazy things have happened today."

"Is there anything I can help with?"

"No, Goliath," Elisa gave him a smile. "Thank you for asking. I will be right back," she promised.

Goliath frowned at the doorway. It seemed as it Jason Canmore was not the only one to avoid questions tonight. Something was bothering Elisa, and it was somehow something that she felt that she could not share with him.

He trusted her implicitly and he wanted to believe her. He loved her, but had known her long enough to know that she hated asking for help. She would rather suffer in silence sometimes, rather than ask for help.

He decided that if she wouldn't tell him on her own, he would have to try to find out what was wrong on his own. He followed her at a distance, stopping only when she did to knock on a door frame.

Most of the individual rooms in the Labyrinth had no doors, and the few that did had the locks disengaged. If the doors could not be decoded, they had been removed to prevent the residents from locking themselves (or others) in.

To Goliath's knowledge, there was only one place in the labyrinth with a working lockable door, and that was the room where those who sought shelter within the sanctuary were made to leave their weapons.

Derek called out an answer to Elisa's knock and invited her in.

"Elisa!" He said, sounding surprised. "What are you doing back here tonight?"

"My apartment is still being staked out," Elisa said with a disgusted sigh. "I'm not sure I should stay there right now, anyway."

Goliath crept forward, careful to stay in the deep shadows so he wouldn't be spotted.

"Why not?" Derek wondered aloud. "What else is going on?"

Elisa removed a piece of paper from her pocket and unfolded it. She held it out to her brother to read. He read through most of it before it occurred to him what it was.

"Is this a joke?" He asked.

"Unfortunately, it's not," Elisa said, running a frustrated hand through her hair. "That was on the door of my apartment when I went up there today."

Derek squinted in anger as he read from the paper. "'The building tenants and management have met and have decided that the protests are causing too much of a disturbance and posing a threat to the safety of those in residence'," he read aloud. He lowered the page to look at his sister. "They're kicking you out?"

"Got it in one," Elisa responded.

"Damn them," Derek said. He handed the paper back to Elisa. "What are you going to do?"

"Derek, I have not to foggiest idea," she admitted. "Honestly, I don't even know where to begin. My face is everywhere right now, and I'm not sure I could find a place to rent because of it. If I did," Elisa continued, "I don't think I could afford it right now. I have used up all of my paid time off and sick leave. While all of this is going on, I am on unpaid leave from work. Not only that, I have a few requirements that really narrow my options down. If I can't find anywhere in Manhattan, I may have to look farther into the city."

"What are your requirements?"

"Pets, for one. I have Cagney, and have had him since I rescued him from that storm drain when I first moved into Manhattan."

"We can find a place that will let you have him," Derek assured her. "What else is the issue?"

Elisa sent him a telling look. "Top floor. I need a place that has roof access or at least a balcony for the clan."

Derek heaved a frustrated sigh, "Elisa…"

She held out a hand to stop her brother. "No, that one is not negotiable. The clan doesn't have the clocktower to go to anymore, and from what I have heard, the city isn't planning on rebuilding it. What happens if they are too far away from the castle or need a place to go? Especially now. They are safe right now, but what happens if Xanatos suddenly goes off the deep end again? I'm not saying that I don't trust him at all… But I don't trust him a hundred percent, either."

Derek sighed. He understood her logic.

"Alright," He sighed. "So… What is the plan?"

"For right now," Elisa said, "I am hoping that I can crash here for a day or two. Hopefully things will calm down by then, and we can focus on this other stuff."

"Of course," Derek said. "You are my sister. You can stay here as long as you want. Go get Cagney and bring him here, so you don't have to worry about him."

"Thanks, Derek," Elisa said with a sigh. "Hopefully this all blows over soon, and we can get back to some semblance of normal."

"Normal?" Derek sounded confused. "I know not this normal of which you speak."

"Tell me about it," Elisa laughed. On an impulse, she leaned forward and gave her brother a hug. "I love you, Derek."

"I know," Derek said. "I love you back, Elisa."

Deep within the shadows, Goliath retreated. He slowly made his way to the above ground exit from the Labyrinth.

Goliath had gathered the clan in the main hall and shared the news.

"They're just going to make her leave?" Lexington was upset at the news.

None of the Gargoyles were thrilled, exactly.

"Father," Angela said, hesitantly, "Where will Elisa go?"

"I do not know," Goliath admitted.

"I may have a solution." Xanatos said from the doorway.

"Xanatos," Goliath greeted.

"Forgive me for interrupting," Xanatos said, "But I was passing by when I overheard."

Brooklyn rolled his eyes. "Just passing by?"

"Of course," Xanatos said. "I have no need to spy on you all on purpose. Not anymore," He added.

"What solution do you have?" Goliath asked.

"I have several investment properties here in the Manhattan area," he said. "A few of them have large penthouse apartments that are sitting empty."

"I do not know," Goliath said thoughtfully.

"Just a suggestion," Xanatos said with a shrug. "I will keep one available, just in case. But it would be rent free until she returned to work, top floor and I would let her have her cat." He turned to walk away.

"I can not make this decision for her," Goliath said. "I will tell her of what you have offered, however."

Xanatos nodded, and walked out of the room.

"Would that not be the perfect solution, lad?" Hudson asked.

"Yes," Goliath agreed. "But I will not take this choice from her. She has lost much because of her relationship with us, and I can not force her into this."

"But you will tell her," Angela insisted.

"Yes," Goliath answered. He would, but he was certain that Elisa would not like the idea. In the meantime, he meant to make sure that she was able to get her pet and enough of her possessions so that she could be comfortable in the Labyrinth, even if it was only temporary.


	15. Chapter 15

Goliath waited until Elisa was ready to talk about her move. She abbreviated the problem quite a bit from what he had heard her tell her brother, however. When she talked to him, she almost made it sound as if the idea of moving was her own, with no mention as to why she was moving.

That was to protect the clan's feelings, he knew. As it was with Derek, Goliath did not agree with it, but he knew her well enough to understand why she was doing it.

Goliath and Elisa had returned to her apartment just before midnight. She insisted on leaving her lights off so that no one knew that she was there.

Paranoid, maybe. At least the picketers wouldn't know that she was home to cause more trouble.

As a result, there were times she relied heavily on Goliath's night vision.

"Do you see him?" Elisa asked.

Goliath knelt down and lifted an edge of the thick blankets that covered Elisa's bed. "I believe he is under the bed."

Elisa sighed. "There's only one way to get him out when he's this scared." Elisa walked from the room and into the kitchen. There was the whirring noise of the electric can opener, just before the smell of fish permeated the apartment.

Cagney poked his head out from beneath the bed, looked at Goliath and shot from the room.

Elisa placed the can of food on the kitchen floor, and looked on quietly at her pet who was greedily devouring the can of tuna. She sat on the floor next to her furry companion and ran her hand down his back. Over the last hour, she had came to a realization.

"I can't take him to the Labyrinth with me." She said sadly.

"Why can you not?" Goliath said.

"It's too big, too scary with too many people," Elisa said. "He's cowering and hiding from two of us, and he  _ knows _ us. What is he going to do with so many people in the tunnels?"

Goliath could not bear to see Elisa so sad.

"We could keep him at the castle," He suggested. "He would be well cared for. The clan has already taken care of him once before, while we were on Avalon."

Elisa nodded. "If you're sure, that would be wonderful."

"Cagney would not be happy here alone," Goliath said, taking a turn at stroking the cat's back. "And when you are comfortable in your new home, we will bring him back to you."

Elisa smiled at Goliath. "That would be great."

"Anything that you need," Goliath said.

Elisa leaned forward, and gave him a kiss. "Thank you."

A low rumble of thunder interrupted the moment, forcing the two of them apart.

"We should get going," Elisa said softly. "Or we're going to get soaked."

The rain began as Elisa ducked into the door to the Labyrinth. Thankfully, they had dropped Cagney off at the castle before coming here, or Goliath would be having to handle one seriously angry kitty.

Goliath had dropped Elisa off before heading back to the castle for the night. He promised to be back after the sun went down the next night to help Elisa start the process of packing her belongings.

In the meantime, Elisa was looking at her first night alone in the Labyrinth. It shouldn't bother her, and yet… She knew that the Labyrinth was as safe a place as she could get, but she felt like she was being followed.

Elisa hadn't realized just how safe Goliath made her feel, just by being there, and how uneasy she felt knowing that he was so far away.

She shook her head at the thought.  **_Time to pull up my big girl pants_ ** , she told herself as she retraced the route to her room.

The main area of the Labyrinth was a large, rectangular area that was honeycombed with rooms that had at one time been a series of cells and cages for the genetic experiments that had been done by Gen-U-Tech in their heyday. Now, however, they were small bedroom sized shelters for the homeless and those in need.

The rooms that the Mutates had taken for themselves were on the second level, set back in one of the farthest hallways. They had wanted to have this sanctuary for anyone who had the need for help...but they had also wanted their privacy.

Elisa's room was one of the few rooms that were separated from the others in its own hallway, across from Derek and Maggie's rooms.

She found that someone, probably Maggie, had hung a privacy curtain in her doorway.

A boom of thunder from outside seemed to shake the ground, and the power blinked on and off once. Elisa ducked in her room before the power went out entirely. The last thing she wanted was to be alone in the total darkness of the underground.

She stowed her bag under the wooden chair that, other than her cot, was the only other furniture in the room. Stripping off her shoes and socks, she curled up under the blankets and tried to get some sleep.

The thunder was getting closer, and if possible louder.

Elisa felt jumpy, restless. After laying there for almost an hour, she gave up on sleep. She didn't feel like being alone, so she put on a comfortable pair of jeans, a t-shirt, jacket and shoes back on. Knowing that it was her brother's turn for patrolling the labyrinth, she sought out him out in hopes that keeping busy would help with her unease.

Derek was making a walking patrol of the populated areas of the Labyrinth. Once in awhile, there were fights that broke out among the inhabitants, which was why they had occasional walkthroughs of the common areas, but for the most part it was a peaceful place for those in need of shelter and protection could come.

Elisa joined him on his rounds. It made her feel useful after so long of being off of her usual routine with the NYPD.

The residents were all bunked down for the night, the only lights were from the open common area. Some of the rooms had curtains, sheets or blankets hanging in the doorways, giving the inhabitants some privacy. Others had nothing, but those inside did not seem to mind.

There were a few groups of people gathered around metal barrels with fires in them, warming themselves and talking amongst themselves.

The storm started coming down in full force. In some areas of the Labyrinth, the water began pouring down from holes in the concrete above their heads.

"Derek, why is it leaking down here?" Elisa asked. "I don't remember there being so many openings before."

"They are doing some construction topside," Derek said. "There is a massive basement parking structure that is butting up against the ceiling of the Labyrinth. All of the digging, drilling and cement pouring might have weakened the ceiling."

"Is it safe?" Elisa asked, looking upward.

"I had hoped so," he said, looking uneasily upwards. "There has not been a rain this hard since the construction began. I had not realized that it had deteriorated so much without the construction workers noticing that there was something below them. As it is, there is already a double layer of underground parking lot up there, and I have a bad feeling that it is just filling up like an empty swimming pool. It's going to leak for freaking  _ days _ ."

Elisa had a shiver. Not a comforting story before bed, that was for sure.

There were so many people that needed help, and only so many available hands to help. Both Maggie and Claw were pitching in where they could, armed with flashlights to fight the darkness, but many others were trying to get themselves and their possessions to higher ground.

Elisa noticed a woman with two small children who seemed to be struggling. She excused herself from Derek, and walked over to help where she could.

" **_Geez, it must really be coming down out there,"_ ** Elisa thought to herself.

"Mama," the youngest child, a little girl with black hair pulled into pigtails, tugged on her mother's coat. "My dolly."

"Oh," the mother looked around distractedly.

Elisa knelt down in front of the little girl. "Do you know where your doll is, sweetie?"

The little girl pointed to their old room, near where the large puddle was spreading. "She was asleep on the bed."

Elisa nodded, and patted the girl on the back. "I'll go get her. You stay here with your mother, ok?"

The girl nodded, and popped her thumb in her mouth.

Elisa smiled at her. She liked kids, even if her lifestyle as a detective on the overnight shift didn't make it possible to have any.

Elisa turned and made her way back to the small family's room. There, on top of the bed, was a well loved, home made rag doll with bright orange hair. The doll had definitely seen better days, but was obviously very important to the child.

Just as Elisa was about to walk through the doorway, a large piece of the concrete let loose from above, blocking her exit and landed solidly on the ground. There was a small opening at the top, slightly larger than a shoebox. It was not big enough for her to crawl through, even if she could reach it. The water began pouring in from above in a massive torrent.

Suddenly, Elisa found herself in the dark and cut off visually from everyone. She could hear the startled calls from those nearby, as the debris and water came crashing down.

"Derek?" Elisa called out. "Maggie?"

There was a crash of thunder, and the little bit of light from outside cut out.

Elisa felt the water level rising, lapping at her ankles.

Elisa was fighting panic. She rubbed a hand over her chest, where a tightness was taking hold and making it hard for her to breathe.

"Hello?" Elisa called out. "Anyone?"

The cold water was crawling up her calves, making her shiver. With her hands held in front of her, she frantically felt her way to the blocked entry. Feeling with her feet, she tried to crawl up to where she had seen the opening.

The concrete face was smooth, however, and Elisa slid back to the ground. She lost her footing, and fell backward. Though the water was rising, it had only been a little over her mid calf line when Elisa was standing. Falling on her butt, however, the water was almost chest high.

Elisa fought her way up, gasping at the cold. She forced herself to her feet, and shivering, she began calling out in earnest.

"Derek! Maggie! Claw!" Elisa cried out. "Please, someone, help!"

The rushing water drowned out any responses that may have been made. She couldn't even be sure that someone had heard  _ her _ .

Elisa began shoving at the concrete, trying to move it on her own. The chunk did not move, and she wasn't surprised. The thing was huge.

The roar of the cascading water filled her ears.

Suddenly, she was no longer only in the dark room in the Labyrinth. She was alternating from the small room to standing at the top of the Croton River Dam, looking over the edge at the water that was rushing through the flood control gates with the sounds of the Hunters and Gargoyles fighting behind her.

She knew what was about to happen, she had relived it in her mind dozens of time but still, she was powerless to stop it.

She turned to watch the fight, and saw Jason's body flying through the air toward her. There was the breath stealing sensation of his body crashing into hers, and suddenly she was falling….

"Elisa," Derek's firm voice came through the darkness. "Elisa, can you hear me?"

Elisa fought, reaching, trying to grab something, anything to stop her fall, her own screams echoing in her ears.

"Elisa, are you alright?" Derek called again.

The three mutates, Derek, Maggie and Claw, were working together to move the concrete slab from where it had fallen. When the concrete had broken away from above, it had opened a hole in the foundation from the construction above the Labyrinth. The rain had been gathering in the poured concrete structure, which was now causing the sanctuary below to start flooding. Elisa had been calling for help, but had failed to respond to their voices.

Suddenly, they heard Elisa scream.

Derek strained every muscle that he had control over, but the slab would not move. Claw came forward with several lengths of metal rebar rods and pipes. Derek grabbed one of the pipes, and searched for somewhere along the bottom that he could fit it.

There was nothing. His only chance was to fit it in the opening at the top, and try to pry it away from there. It was going to be an awkward angle, but he didn't see that they had any other choice.

"Maggie," Derek called out as he and Claw started climbing around on the concrete slab. "Call the Gargoyles, and tell them we need help. If we can get Elisa out on our own, they can help us with the people."

Maggie nodded, and started wading her way to their private block of rooms where the one and only working telephone was.

"Elisa," Derek called out. "We're coming!"

Elisa put her hands over her ears. Someone was talking, but she couldn't make out the words…

Her feet felt like they were made of lead, and she could feel her heart racing. A fine sweat was beading up on her forehead, and she was having trouble breathing.

She was wet. And Cold. And the water was so loud…

The slab moved an inch, allowing more water to come rushing in before slamming back into place. The sound was ear splittingly loud, and was drowning out her brother's voice. She knew he was out there,  _ hoped _ he was out there.

Elisa lost her footing again because the force of the incoming water swept her feet out from under her, forcing her to her knees. What had been a slow rising water level was escalating quickly, and as Elisa forced herself back on to her rapidly numbing legs, the water was passing thigh high.

"Help, please," Elisa called out.

"Elisa," Derek called. "We are trying to get you out of there. Hang on!"

He and Claw pushed against the pipe again with all their might, and the slab pulled away from the wall one more extra precious inch. Unfortunately, every inch they gained only gave the water more of an opening to get in before rocking back into its original position.

"Derek," Maggie called as she ran. "Here!" She tossed a long cylindrical object to Claw.

Claw took a moment to look at the object, before pressing the round button on it's side.

A small beam of light protruded from the flashlight.

"Damn it!" Derek swore. He threw the useless pipe off to the side, and reached for the light. With his left hand, he aimed the beam into the small hole at the top. He shoved his right arm through the hole as far as he could. "Elisa, grab my hand!"

Now that she could see, Elisa jumped, trying to reach her brother's hand.

One try…

Two tries…

She had done this before, and not that long ago. The rushing water, the desperate attempt at rescue…

And again, there was no way that she could do it.

"Derek!" She called out, frantically. In the light from the single flashlight, she could only  _ just _ make out where his hand was, but it was too high for her to reach.

The water was almost to her shoulders now.

**_Is this really happening?_ ** Elisa screamed in her head. For her to survive the fall from the dam, and her near drowning in the Hudson River, only to  _ drown _ in the homeless sanctuary?

"Derek!" Elisa cried out, making one last attempt to reach his hand.

Whether it was strength born from her desperation, or an added buoyancy from the water, Elisa didn't know...but suddenly she was able to make contact with her brother's hand. She lacked the strength to hang on, but she had felt the tips of his fingers.

Derek heaved a sigh of relief. Now he at least knew that she was alive.

"Elisa," He called out, hoping that she could hear. "We called for help. Hang on."

Elisa could barely make out his voice and what he was saying. She wanted to believe it, believe that help was on its way, but the water was chin high and still rising. She only stood 5'5" tall, and in a room where the ceiling was almost 7', she knew that she was in trouble. Even with the opening at the top, the water would probably still reach over 6 feet deep before it couldn't rise anymore.

There was a scraping noise and the slab rocked outward another inch before settling back again. In that brief moment that it had moved, the water rose to the point that she had to start treading water.

"Oh, god," Elisa said. She was trying to keep her head above water, but her limbs were so numb that she was having trouble controlling them. She kept bobbing in the water, her head going under occasionally.

Her foot unexpectedly made contact with something hard.  **_The bed,_ ** Elisa thought, and struggled over to that side of the room. She found a corner of the bedframe with her feet, and braced herself on the wall.

"I lost her," Derek yelled to Claw as he withdrew his hand from the small hole. He tossed the flashlight to Maggie so that they would have a chance to see what the hell they were doing. "We have to keep trying."

Claw handed Derek the pipe, and together, they jammed it back onto the hole. Together, they pushed and pulled for all they were worth, but the slab had jammed in tight with the last rocking motion to the point that it wouldn't even move now. All they had really managed to do, it seemed, was wedge the damn thing in the doorway.

"Damn it," Derek yelled, throwing the pipe aside again. He motioned for the flashlight. With the flashlight in his left hand, he aimed the small beam of light in the opening. Once more, he jammed his right arm as far as he could into the hole again. "Elisa, where are you? Take my hand."

Elisa was struggling to keep her head above the water. She left her safe perch and swam toward her brother's light. She was tired from the effort that it had taken for her to just keep her head above water, and her strength was not going to hold out much longer. She made one last lunge, and grasped her brother's hand.

His hand closed around hers, and helped to guide her to the slab.

"Derek," Elisa coughed through the water. "Don't let go."

Derek pulled her up as far as he could, and made a desperate grab for her with his other hand. In doing so, he dropped the flashlight into the blocked off room with Elisa. She watched in sorrow as it sank and flickered out.

The top of Elisa's face came into view through the small opening, lit only by the flashlight that Maggie was holding, and Derek heaved a sigh of relief.

Elisa coughed and gasped greedily at the fresh air coming through that small opening.

The water had reached it's peak level, and was starting to pour out the hole around Elisa's face. Now she had the pressure of the water trying to force its way out to contend with. The water was pushing forward, trying to make its way out of the same small hole that was Elisa's only lifeline, and in the process it was pushing her body forward into the rough, broken concrete.

It was getting harder and harder to draw a breath.

"Derek!" Elisa gasped.

Derek was straining to hold her above the water. He was out of options, but maybe if he could keep her head above water long enough…

He repositioned his hands, so that he had a grip on the shoulders of her jacket. Elisa reached up and clasped his forearms with her own hands.

Now that the water was coming out at him, with his face pressed so closely to the opening, he was having difficulty seeing and breathing himself.

Elisa gasped and sputtered past the water, and in the light of the lone flashlight, she noticed that Derek was doing the same. Because of just how far he had to reach through to hold her up, he was face first into the water. It was bad enough that she was in this mess, but there was no way she was going to let her brother get hurt.

No way in hell...

Elisa brought her hands up to where they laid on her shoulders. "Derek," she yelled, "You need to let go."

"No," Derek growled. He bent his head so that the water could run over the back of his head. Doing this, it left his face mostly clear to breathe but caused him to have to break eye contact with his sister.

"It's alright," Elisa said, feeling strangely calm. "Let go."

Derek shook his head, even though there was no way for her to see him do it. He felt her hands grasp his where they still clung to the shoulders of her jacket.

"I love you, Derek," She coughed. "Now let go."

"No," He yelled.

Elisa took one last, precious gulp of air, and with her last reserve of strength, she tried to pry his hands loose.

"What are you doing?" He asked, struggling to keep his hold on her. He tried to reposition his grip on her, but in the end the limited space allowed by the opening worked against him. She raised her arms, effectively slipping out of her jacket.

Derek watched helplessly as her face sank below the water. He pulled her beloved red coat out of the hole, flung it aside and plunged his right arm back in, searching frantically for anything of hers he could grab. "Elisa!


	16. Chapter 16

"Derek!" Maggie yelled from behind him. "Move!"

Derek turned in time to see a few of the Gargoyle clan rushing forward through the water towards them. Derek lept out of the way as Goliath punched his talons into the concrete. He was straining to lift it, as first Hudson, then Broadway, Brooklyn, and finally Angela joined the effort.

Between all of them, the were able to remove the obstacle.

As the concrete wedge was removed, a wall of water came rushing out.

In the darkened room, if not for her light blue jeans, Elisa might not have been seen right away.

Maggie had been watching for her, and immediately started wading her direction. Elisa washed up against a nearby wall, and Maggie was there to help her sit up.

Elisa gasped for air, her lungs burning. She couldn't stop struggling for air, even though on some level she knew she was out of that nightmare. Her vision swam as her stomach churned. She pushed away from Maggie long enough to start heaving the water contents of her stomach out.

Derek was at her side now. "You idiot," He growled, as he helped hold her above the water level of the flooded ground floor. She continued to gasp and gag as her body protested the water in her system. "Why would you do that?"

Elisa tried to push Derek's arms away. She didn't seem aware that Derek was there, or even that she was free.

In Elisa's mind, she was still surrounded by water in the dark. She was alone, like last time and about to run out of air for good.

She couldn't breathe, she needed to get free to breathe.

"Elisa, are you alright?" Goliath asked urgently, hurrying to her side.

Derek was holding her tightly, confused as to why she continued her struggle against him.

She was freezing cold, her body was shuddering so hard that it was as if it were trying to shake itself apart. She was fighting her brother's hold on her with everything her tired body had left, though by now, that was not much. He could feel her back arching, chest heaving and laboring with her attempt to pull air into her lungs.

Goliath knelt down, placing his hand on her back. He, too, noticed Elisa's battle for breath. "Elisa," He said, softly, "You are safe now."

"We need to get her dry," Maggie reminded them. "And warm."

Derek nodded in agreement. He tried to keep his hold on Elisa as he tried to stand, but in the act of getting to his feet, his grip loosened enough for Elisa's flailing to increase. His arms, already strained from the

"Goliath," He said, hoarsely. "I can't hold her anymore. Take her."

Goliath took Elisa from her brother's arms. Derek had spent his considerable strength trying to save his sister for more than an hour. He deserved a rest.

"Follow me," Maggie said. Wading her way to the stairs, she paused to gather Elisa's jacket before leading the way to her own room. She reached down to turn up the temperature on her little portable heater. "Put her on my chair, and you boys go somewhere for a while. Angela can stay and help me."

Goliath looked like he wanted to argue, but Maggie was having none of it.

"Goliath," she said quietly, "We need to get her cleaned up, dry and warm. Please trust us to do this for her."

"What can we do?" He asked.

"There are many other people in the Labyrinth that need help right now," She pointed out. "They would be grateful for any aid that you and the clan can provide."

"Of course," Goliath said. He sat Elisa down on top of the colorful printed seat, and watched as she sat, staring into space. She looked so small…

He ran a hand over the top of her head, "I will return soon."

With that, he led the way for the other gargoyles back out to the Labyrinth, entrusting Elisa's welfare to Maggie and his daughter.

Derek hung back from the others. "Why do you think she did it Maggie?" he asked quietly from the doorway. "I could have held her until the Gargoyles came. I  _ had _ her. Why did she just break my grip like that?"

"I don't know, Derek," Maggie admitted. "You can ask her tomorrow. Right now, she needs to be in dry, clean clothes and some space. Would you go to her room and get her bag for me? I'll take her to the showers and help her get cleaned up, and I will sit with her tonight. You can take over in the morning, if you want."

Derek nodded. He walked to Elisa and touched her arm. "I'll be back later, sis," he promised.

Once the room was cleared of the males, Maggie turned her full attention on Elisa.

"Elisa," Maggie said firmly. "Elisa, Angela and I are going to go to the bathroom now and clean you up a bit."

Elisa blinked uncomprehending at the two of them.

Maggie dropped to her knees beside the chair. "Elisa? We need you to help us. We can get you to the bathroom, but we are going to need your help getting you cleaned up."

Angela looked at Maggie anxiously. "What do we need to do?"

"We are going to the old locker room and shower facility." Maggie said. "Elisa will feel better once she's clean and warm again."

Angela looked doubtful. It was hard to imagine that some soap and heat could erase everything that her friend had been through. Elisa's gaze was unwavering, but was glazed and focused at something that Angela couldn't see. She bowed to Maggie's knowledge, however, and moved out of the way so that there was room for Elisa to stand up.

"Angela," Maggie was all business now, "Go to Elisa's room at the end of the hall and get her sweatsuit. It's the warmest clothing that she has with her."

Maggie wrestled Elisa to her feet while Angela ran to get the clothing.

Luckily, Angela didn't have to look hard, as Elisa had laid the suit on the bed for when she was ready to go back to bed. Angela gathered the clothing quickly and headed back to help Maggie.

Together, they all but had to drag Elisa there, as she had refused to even lift a foot. Once in the old employee locker room from Gen-U-Tech's glory days, the two winged females sat Elisa down on one of the benches.

**_She still seems to be in a little bit of shock_** , Maggie thought. **_She's practically catatonic._** **_And no wonder! Two near drownings in the span of as many weeks. It had to have some repercussions, some lingering effects on a person._**

Maggie sent Angela out for towels, and with a sigh, Maggie helped to strip Elisa out of her clothes.

Once Angela's task was completed, she returned to the showers hoping that a long hot shower would help revive her a little bit. Angela placed the towels on the bench next to Elisa and walked into the tiled shower area. She turned the knob, and waited for the water to warm up.

Maggie wrapped Elisa in a large, dry towel and bent to pick up Elisa's wet clothing off of the floor with the intent of hanging them up to dry.

Elisa's whimper caught Maggie's attention, and she idly glanced up.

At the sight of Elisa's face, Maggie froze. Her face had lost any of the color that she had left. Her eyes were huge, her hands were covering her ears and she was once again borderline hyperventilating.

Maggie hurried to her side, "Elisa? Elisa, what's wrong?"

Elisa seemed to crumble before her eyes. She had slid to the floor, hands still clasped tightly over her ears and her eyes were clamped shut tightly.

"Elisa!" Maggie called out, unsure of what to do. She dropped the sodden mess back onto the floor.

"Angela," Maggie called in a panic, "Turn the shower off."

Confused, Angela spun the dial, cutting off the water. "What happened?" She called out.

"It's Elisa," Maggie answered, kneeling beside her friend.

With the sudden silence, almost immediately Maggie saw a difference in Elisa. It started small, in the lessening of her trembles, and Maggie understood.

She had seen this once before. Back when she was living in Ohio, when she was human, she'd had a cousin that went off to war. When he came home, he was fine most of the time, but the sound of airplanes or helicopters overhead caused a similar reaction in him.

The fear, the rapid breathing, the vacant expression…

Elisa was in the grips of a whopping panic attack.

"Oh, no…" Maggie grimaced. "I am so sorry, Elisa. I wasn't thinking." Maggie sighed.

Angela was standing in the doorway, clearly upset and confused. Maggie would talk to her soon, but for now she was going to focus on Elisa.

"No more water, Elisa. I promise." She spoke softly, calmly. Turning, she retrieved a towel from the bench behind her, and gently wrapped it around the detective's shoulders. "We will just wash your hair, get you dry and into warm clothes, and we can get out of here." Maggie looked back to Angela, and motioned her forward to help.

Angela sat with Elisa for a few minutes while Maggie rushed around. She gathered a bucket, washcloths, soap and shampoo. To avoid the noise of running water that had seemed to cause her friend's panic, she filled the bucket with the aid of the men's locker room across the hall.

Together, Angela and Maggie cleaned the grit and mud off the best they could without the aid of the showers. They had to shampoo her hair three times to get all of the muck out, refilling the bucket twice.

Elisa sat silently the whole time, with no further incidents. Maggie briefly, quietly, told Angela what she thought was going on with Elisa.

"She  _ will _ get better though," Angela said, quietly. "Won't she? I mean, I was with her when she lost her memory or been under magic spells before, and it eventually wore off."

Maggie shook her head. "Every person is different, and I can't guarantee anything."

Angela nodded her head. She understood what Maggie was saying, but she truly believed that Elisa would snap out of this state. They had been through so much in their time together, that it was hard to think of Elisa as anything other than the strong and vibrant woman that she had begun to see as a mother figure.

In Elisa's mind, time was overlapping and repeating. Sometimes she was in the Labyrinth, and sometimes she was with Jason the morning after her fall from the dam.

Vaguely, somewhere in the back of her mind, she heard Maggie and Angela were talking to her...But she was also seeing and hearing Katie, the college bound forensics student, and her mother who had helped Jason and herself that morning.

**_Which was happening?_ ** Elisa wondered.  **_Both seemed too real… So, which one was the dream?_ **

Maggie made quick work of drying Elisa's hair with the towel.

Both she and Angela helped Elisa back into her collegiate sweatsuit, get to her feet, and shuffled her back to the room.

Once there, Maggie adjusted the temperature on the small space heater that she kept there for the cold and damp that permeated the old laboratory sometimes.

With Elisa tucked under the covers, and the space heater making the room warm, Maggie sent Angela out to help the rest of the clan while she made good on her promise to sit with Elisa.

At least for now. She sat with her back to the wall, and leaned her head back. It had been a long night, and it didn't look as if it were going to get any easier.

Once the rain had stopped falling, the downpour in the Labyrinth was finally slowing down enough that the water on the ground floor was finally draining away through the ancient drainage grates built in the floors.

The Gargoyles had been tireless in their efforts to safeguard the wellbeing of those within the Labyrinth walls, but it was nearing sunrise.

Derek clapped a hand on Goliath's shoulders. "Thank you," He said. "For everything that you have done for us tonight."

Goliath glanced at Elisa's brother. "It is no more than you would do for us, should the need arise."

Derek nodded. "True enough. In the meantime, one thing I can offer you all is a place to rest for the night. There are two rooms available, one on each side of the room that Elisa will be in."

Goliath raised an eyebrow. "You are certain?"

Derek nodded. "You saved my sister, Goliath, when I couldn't. I owe you much more than I can ever repay."

Goliath shook his head. " _ You _ saved your sister. We just moved a large piece of rock."

"Well," Derek said wearily, rolling his shoulders to work out the kinks. "We will just have to agree to disagree on that one." He motioned the clan to follow as he led the way back toward the Labyrinth Clan's rooms. Half of the clan went into the room to the left of Elisa's. The rest went to the one on the right.

Derek called out to Goliath, and waited until the others were in their rooms. Derek nodded towards the center door. "Elisa's in there. I know she feels safer with you around."

Goliath nodded his thanks, and entered Elisa's room. Elisa was laying on her side, almost completely covered by a mound of blankets, even though the room was almost oppressively warm.

Goliath gently woke Maggie, and told her to go and get some rest. Maggie rose and stumbled, not entirely awake, across the hall and into Derek's room.

Goliath took up the post beside Elisa's bed. He brushed a damp tendril of hair away from her face. "Rest easy, Elisa," He said softly. "I am here now."


	17. Chapter 17

Elisa fought her way through the darkness, opening her eyes in a strange room that was sweltering hot. She tried to move her arms, and found that even trying to move was difficult.

She opened her eyes to the dim light that was given off by the small bedside lamp beside her cot. Elisa found that she was buried beneath several layers of blankets, and struggled to free herself.

She finally managed to peel off the last of the layers, and sat upright.

She almost tripped over Goliath. He had the good sense to leave her space to get around him this time, so she couldn't complain.

It took her a few moments to figure out where she was, and it only left her with more questions than answers. Why was she in Maggie's room, why she was wearing a sweatsuit and why she felt like she had gone a few rounds in the ring with the champ?

Elisa rolled her shoulders in an attempt to loosen them back up from their stiffened state. She stood and gave her body a full stretch, letting out a sigh when she started feeling her muscles start working again.

First order of business, she needed to go to the restroom.  _ Then _ she could take a deeper look into what had happened last night. So much of it was a blur, and seemed like a series of bad dreams. Her head was still a little foggy on what was real and what was not.

Elisa wandered sleepily into the locker room. After using the facilities, Elisa forced herself to wash her hands, even though the thought had made her hands shake. She chalked the reaction up to the nightmare's lingering effects.

Turning off the faucet, Elisa turned and found her jacket laying underneath the bench behind her. She bent down and grabbed it by the collar, and watched as water poured out of it in thin cascades. Lifting it up higher, she stared at the incriminating drops as they fell.

**_Damn_ ** , she thought. She had really been hoping that last night had been one long, realistic nightmare. But… How would her jacket had gotten here, and be soaking wet?

**_The rain_ ** , she reasoned to herself even as she knew that it could very well be a lie. She was afraid to admit, even if it were only for herself, that the events that had haunted her last night had not been a dream.

There was one way to check.

She began with the coat's front pockets, and found nothing. That was really no big surprise, since she tended to leave those empty for her hands. She habitually stuck everything into the inner pocket.

Elisa reached inside her coat, and her hand came in contact familiar shape. She closed her eyes, knowing that when she saw the doll, it would be proof that the events of last night had been real.

Elisa was no coward, however, so she forced her eyes open.

The still dripping home-made and ragged doll gazed back at her with the chipped black button eyes.

Elisa wrapped the dripping doll in her towel and squeezed the excess water from it. When she had wrung out as much as she could, she laid it on the bench so that it could dry out. She hung her coat up on one of the towel hooks in an attempt to get it to dry as well. After two dunks in some pretty nasty water, she was sure it was a goner. The fact that it had come out fine after the Hudson River was one thing, but after this, who knew?

Elisa stood for a moment, picking the doll back up, unconsciously passing it from hand to hand. Now that she knew that it wasn't all some kind of freaky dream, what was she supposed to do about it? She didn't remember a lot of it clearly, as if she had experienced it all through some sort of haze that had images confusing her brain. Memories from the dam and from last night were tangling up so badly that she wasn't sure what was real and what was not.

Elisa wandered out into the hallway. There was one thing that she could try, and she was not sure if it was a good idea or not…

But she had to try.

Elisa walked towards to common area of the Labyrinth. There was a gaping hole in the ceiling two stories up where the chunk that had blocked her in had fallen from. The resulting hole had allowed dirt and rocks from the above ground to wash in, leaving a thick layer of mud over everything that it could touch.

Elisa avoided the worst of it as best she could as she made her way to the room where it had all happened. The concrete piece had been moved aside, thanks to the Gargoyles, she assumed. She stood in the doorway and took in the scene.

The furniture had been moved, probably due to the flooding. There was a heavy industrial bed frame along the right wall, but the mattress is missing now. One of those cheap plastic lawn chairs lay on its side in the corner. She was assuming that it had been white, once upon a time, but now it was a creepy color of mottled grey and brown because of concrete dust and mud.

Elisa took a step inside, and her foot hit something hard. She leaned over and felt around, trying to find what it was and found a long and heavy Maglite flashlight. Elisa remembered seeing a light, but it had disappeared at some point, leaving her in the darkness again.

Tapping the flashlight against her leg, she walked a little farther in, and sat on the edge of the metal bedframe. In the light of day, the room didn't feel so scary, but the watermarks only inches from the ceiling made her realize just how badly things could have ended.

Tracing a path from the gaping hole to halfway across the room's ceiling was a giant crack, some exposing daylight.  **_Well, that explained why the water kept coming last night_ ** , Elisa thought.  **_It was coming from inside and outside the concrete blockage._ **

Elisa rubbed a hand over her chest, trying to relieve the panicked tightening that she felt from just being in the room.

"I thought I might find you here," Derek said from where he was leaning in the doorway.

Elisa jumped. "Jesus Christ, Derek!"

"Sorry," He said, but the grin on his face belied his words. He walked towards her, and perched on the frame beside her. "So, are you going to tell me what happened last night?"

Elisa turned to face him. "You are going to have to be a little more specific, Derek. A lot of last night is a little confused in my head right now."

Derek frowned. "How about the part where I was trying to keep your head above water, and you purposely broke my hold?"

Elisa sighed, and looked at her brother. "There is a long, complicated answer to that, Derek, and I'm not sure that it would make any sense." She admitted. "It barely makes sense to me."

"Try me," Derek said. "I have the time, and so do you."

Elisa sighed wearily, rubbing a hand over her forehead. "What did Broadway tell you about that night of my accident?"

"Uh," Derek said, looking uneasy. "I actually forgot to ask him."

Elisa looked at him disgusted. "You push and push to get information, and then you  _ forget _ to talk about it?"

Derek shrugged. "It was a crazy night at the castle, and Broadway offered me food... _ that I didn't have to cook myself, by the way _ ... and a black and white Detective mystery movie. Then Maria was there, and..."

"God," Elisa burst out. She got to her feet and began to pace. "I am so tired of having to talk about it and reliving this thing, so I'm only going to tell it one more time." Elisa stopped in her tracks, running her hands roughly over her face in angry frustration. "I fell off of the Croton River Dam, o.k.?"

Derek looked at her in surprise. "You… You  _ fell _ off of the dam? You couldn't have."

"Why is that so unbelievable?"

"Elisa," he said, slowly. "You are forgetting who you are talking to here. I have flown over that Dam many times. I know how big that thing is."

"Yeah?" Elisa burst out, bitterly. "And I can tell you how painfully long that drop is. How every second of that fall feels like an hour, and how cold the water is once you hit the bottom."

Derek stared at her in shock. "You're serious."

"Did you know," Elisa said, flatly. "That the force of the water coming from above and meeting the water on the river, it creates this… I don't know. Suction, I guess. It's what I think being in a washing machine must feel like. I somehow made it to the bottom without hitting the actual dam wall, and yeah," She said, answering him before he could interrupt, "Before you ask, it hurt like hell. One thing that worked in my favor, is that I actually fell into the water from the flood gates first. From there, I was pushed into the river, rather than hitting the surface. At that speed, and that height, it probably would have been like hitting the concrete." Elisa took a shuddering breath. "The suction pulled me down so far, that I didn't think I would ever find the surface again. And when I did, I barely had enough time to take a breath before it pulled me back in and under again.

"I don't know how long I was caught in that cycle, but it felt like forever." Elisa continued, "Each time I came up, it was for less and less time, and I could take in less and less air. It felt like I had a band around my chest, and someone was tightening it every time I tried to get air. The last time I came up, I took in more water than air, and the next thing I knew," Elisa shrugged, "I was waking up on the banks of the Hudson, somewhere near Tallman Mountain State Park."

"You were where?"

"You heard me," Elisa said, tiredly. "I know how far it is. I had to look it up on a map in the hospital gift shop, but I found it. I demanded that they lifeflight me to Manhattan General. You know the rest."

Derek wanted to punch a wall. That his sister had been through something like this on her own, and had kept quiet about it for as long as she had… Hell, the fact that she was alive was a testament to just how strong she was.

His frustration dropped his voice to a low growl, "What does that have to do with last night?"

"I kept having flashes from both… incidents last night." Elisa leaned against one of the water stained walls that could very much have been where her life might have ended last night. Looking up, she traced the water line with her eyes. "There were times, I was back in that river. Unable to breath, unable to see. Look up there," She motioned to the line. It was actually too high for her to reach with her hand. "Towards the end, there was only about an inch clearance for air. If that," Elisa admitted. "The top of the water was not smooth, so even when I was trying to get air, a small wave of water might hit my face, and I'd take in water."

Derek stopped to look at the mark. He tried to picture it. Pitch black, unable to get a good breath of air.

"The water was so freaking cold, on top of everything else," Elisa continued, focusing on her story, her voice and trying to keep her breathing even. "My body was starting to go numb. I was having trouble keeping my head above water, and ended up standing on the bed frame for a while. Then you had the flashlight, and I followed it to your hand. You were keeping me up, but…"

"But?" Derek prompted.

"I could see the toll it was taking on you. You may have a lot more strength now, but it is not inexhaustible. You weren't going to let go," Elisa said, looking him in the eyes. "No matter what it cost you, you weren't going to let go. The water was pushing to get out of that small opening, and it felt like I was being crushed against the slab. On top of that, the water that  _ was _ escaping was going right at your face and you were having trouble getting air for yourself."

Derek nodded, but didn't say anything to interrupt her.

"You were having trouble breathing, I could see that. It wasn't as if it was  _ just _ water, Derek," She felt the need to point out. "When water is churning like that, it stays mixed with the mud and other crap. Trying to breathe around the water would have been bad enough, but you get the mud and silt in your lungs, and it's lights out. I didn't know that help was so close, or if anyone had even taken the time to call for help." Elisa cursed that her eyes were tearing up, and she wiped at them angrily. "I've been there twice now, and I couldn't stand watching you deal with it. You're my baby brother, no matter how big you are," She smiled. "Or hairy."

Derek rose to his feet, and hugged his sister close. "And you think I could have lived with watching you drown?"

Elisa shook her head. "You know, I woke up this morning, convinced that it was all a dream. My memories from then and now kept fading in and out. Blending."

"What changed your mind?"

Elisa gave a mirthful laugh. "My jacket. It was laying in a wet heap in the shower area, and it had the little girl's doll that I had come in here to retrieve. Which reminds me," She said, straightening up from the wall. "I need to find the girl and give her poor doll back to her."

"That may be difficult," Derek admitted. "After last night, we decided that the people here have might be safer topside until we figure out what to do. There was a mass move-out late last night."

"Damn," Elisa said.

"You can say that again." Derek looked around at the destruction. "To tell you the truth, we may have to start looking for a new place ourselves."

Elisa groaned. "OK, two homeless Maza kids are too much right now."

"Well, we can't stay here. Crews are going to come to repair their damaged garage, and find the Gen-U-Tech laboratories down here that no one knows exists."

Elisa groaned. "What a pair, huh? Both of us have some big things to do, and no clue where to start."

"Yeah, well," Derek said. "maybe it's for the best. After all," He looked up at the hole, "this place is really falling apart, and it's not like we have the money for repairs."

Elisa stopped short, a devious smile starting to work it's way across her face.

"What?" Derek asked. "I know that look. What are you planning, sis?"

"It just so happens, that I know someone who owes me a favor."

"Hopefully, it's a good one," Derek muttered.

"Oh, you have no idea." Elisa, feeling more upbeat than she had since she woke up that morning. "I need to use your phone. There are a couple of calls I need to make."


	18. Chapter 18

Her first call was to Matt at noon. She told him the short version of what had happened, minus the life and death stuff, of course.

Within the hour, Matt had building inspectors swarming around the damaged structure. It turns out that the contractors had not had the proper permits or inspections, as well as their not having the ground surveyed for underground structures, such as old subway tunnels or old underground developments..

The city was already threatening massive fines on top of demanding reparations for damages.

While the city officials were making the contractors sweat over that, Elisa made her second call.

As much as she hated to do it, Elisa called Xanatos. She told him that the Mutates needed help, and what the main issues were.

A short while later, after hours of threatening phone calls from the city government and their lawyers, the company who had been starting to build on that site was only too happy to hand over the land and rites to Xanatos Enterprises.

At a discounted price for the trouble, of course.

By late afternoon, there had already been a construction crew from Xanatos Enterprises out, and they had already begun the process of fixing the damage.

Elisa sprung the news over dinner, while everyone was gathered around the kitchen table.

"I don't know how I feel about Xanatos owning the building right above our heads," Derek admitted.

Elisa said, "He owes me. He owes all of us."

"I won't argue that one, sis," Derek said. "I'm just leery. He doesn't exactly have the best history keeping his word."

"I hear you," Elisa said. "Xanatos seems to be better, especially after the clan helped him save his son, but do I trust him to stay that way indefinitely?" Elisa shook her head.

There was an echoing crack of stone and the deep roaring of the gargoyles coming to life for the night. As soon as the noise died off, the conversation resumed.

"Then why go to Xanatos for help?" Derek asked.

"Because you guys are at a distinct advantage if he does go rogue again. You are more familiar with your talents and abilities and can protect yourselves."

"Would you be able to live with him able to keep an eye on you so easily?"

Elisa shook her head. "No, but remember; I am just a human."

"Just a human?" Derek scoffed. He turned to Maggie and Claw, "Is she serious?"

"Derek, play nice," Maggie chided.

"I am," He said with a laugh. "If I wanted to be mean, I'd remind her that she was supposed to call mom and dad two days ago and explain about the hospital stay thing."

Elisa groaned, putting her head in her hands. "Oh, man. Dad is going to kill me."

Derek laughed again, "You're worried about  _ Dad _ ?"

"No, you're right," Elisa answered, her head still held in her hands. "Mom will guilt trip me into  _ wishing _ that Dad would kill me."

"Derek has been talking to them for you," Maggie threw Derek a disgusted look. "They think that you have been taking your meds and sleeping off your cold."

The Gargoyles began filing in, one at a time. Goliath came last.

"That won't hold them for long, though," Derek warned. "Dad talked to Maria and he is  _ seriously _ pissed that you've been hiding out here without telling him about you being out on UPL."

"UPL?" Maggie asked, cocking her head in question.

"It stands for Unpaid Leave." Elisa said.

"How long will you be able to make it without being paid?" Maggie asked concerned.

Elisa shrugged. "I have some savings built up. I work so much that the only thing I spend money for is food and rent. Well," She added wryly. "Rent won't be an issue pretty soon, unless I go topside and start looking."

"You may have to go sooner, rather than later," Derek said with a frown. "I mean, tomorrow is Halloween, and winter is going to be wicked harsh down here for anyone not used to it or who doesn't have fur."

"I know," Elisa said. "I will go searching tomorrow and see what I can come up with."

"We may have an idea for you," Broadway spoke up. "Xanatos said that he owns a building…"

Elisa raised her hands. "Stop. I'm sorry, Broadway, but I'm going to stop you right there. Unless it is my last available option, and I do mean  _ last option _ , I can't live anywhere owned by Xanatos."

Derek decided to run interference, because the gargoyles looked so startled. "As a police officer, she can not knowingly move into a building owned and operated by a known felon."

Elisa leaned back in her seat. "Thanks for the thought guys, but I'll just have to start looking for places. Until then, I'm throwing myself on my baby brother's mercy, in return for clean up labor."

"We'll take it," Derek said. "At least until the chief feels like you can resume your duties."

"And we will help as well," Goliath said.

Together, they armed themselves with shovels, brooms and whatever else they could find.

"Oh, come on, Elisa," Derek shouted. "You can do better than that!"

Elisa, unphased by the good natured ribbing from her brother, smiled and shouted back, "Hey, I'm doing the best I can! We can't  _ all _ have your super-powered, messed up DNA."

"No," Derek agreed with a grin, "But you can be jealous later. Dig, woman!"

Elisa muttered some choice phrases under her breath, and struggled with yet another shovel full of mud. It was everywhere, the worst of which were in the individual rooms where it had gathered in the corners. She had been shoveling for what felt like hours, and after the night that she had just had, her arms felt like they were made of rubber.

A loud ringing sound broke into the friendly banter that was going on during the cleanup efforts.

"That's the telephone," Maggie said. "I'll be right back."

The gargoyles had been clearing the concrete that had fallen from above or broken away during the partial collapse. The equivalent of small boulders had fallen, some breaking on impact, and some, like the one that had caused Elisa's accident, had remained whole. The smaller ones were being moved into one of the abandoned tunnels that housed some old and unused subway tracks.

The huge piece, being dubbed "Elisa's Boulder" was being left in the center of the room. Elisa laughed when she had heard their plan, and called it a conversation piece. She wasn't sure how she felt about looking at it, but for now, she would go with it.

"Elisa," Maggie called. "You have a telephone call."

"Busted," Derek said. "Have fun talking to the parents!"

Elisa rolled her eyes. "Thanks Derek."

Elisa leaned her shovel against the wall, and made her way to the lone office that held the telephone.

"Maza," she answered automatically. After the first year on the force, she had discovered that answering with her name was just more efficient.

"Elisa, it's Matt."

"Oh. Hey, Matt," Elisa said, surprised. She had been expecting to be verbally chewed on by her dad, so the friendly voice was welcome. "What's going on?"

"Well," Matt started, and Elisa could almost hear the smile in his voice. "How would you like to come back to work?"

"Oh, my god," Elisa said, sagging against the wall. "Yes, please."

"The protests are dying off, and you are no longer a poster child for the Anti-Gargoyle Movement, so the Chief told me to get your butt back in here."

"Wow," Elisa said. "That was short-lived."

"Uh…" Matt said, haltingly. "It helps that the Manhattan stations are joining together and forming a special task force unit to investigate the Gargoyles. Once that was announced, things died off pretty quickly..."

"Wait," Elisa interrupted. "A task force? Seriously?"

"There is some good news, though." Matt insisted.

"What could that be?"

"The Captain created the team, and as such, got to appoint the head officer in charge."

Elisa blinked. "The captain set it up?" She asked in disbelief. "Who did she put in charge?"

"Me," Matt said, laughing.

Elisa choked out a laugh. "Oh, my God, Matt. Next time, start with that, will you?"

"You know that she did it on purpose, right?"

"Yeah," Elisa said. "I'm getting that."

"We won't be working together as often," Matt said sadly. "Until the task force is deemed no longer needed, I'm going to be on it."

"Matt, it sucks that we won't be working together, and it  _ really _ stinks that I'm going to have to train a new partner," Elisa said. " _ But _ having you in charge of the task force is a blessing. You can control what they find and don't find."

"That was the captain's reasoning, too."

"Thank the Cap for me."

"Will do," Matt said. "Speaking of the Captain, she wants you back in here to work tomorrow night."

"Done," Elisa said.

"Great. I will talk to you then."

"Kick some ass," Elisa said.

"You too."

Elisa hung up the phone, and indulged herself in a moment to revel in the knowledge that she would be able to get back to her life.

_ Crap… _

That meant that she would have to  _ really _ get to looking for a new place, ASAP.

After spending most of the night of shovelling, fetching and hauling, Elisa was more than ready to take a shower and go to bed.

She was still getting an uncontrollable case of the shakes at the loud sound of water, especially in the large, echoing, empty locker room. Elisa sincerely hoped that she would be able to muscle past it soon. She hated feeling like such a weakling.

She knew that she had good reason for being scared, and knew that anyone who knew the whole of what had happened in the span of a week's time would understand… but that didn't mean that she liked it.

She stayed in the shower as long as she could, the wonderful feeling of being warm and clean warring with her need to run from the water itself. She dried herself, changed into the last of the clean clothes that she had brought with her. She had already packed the rest of her things ready to go home tomorrow afternoon, and letting Maggie have her room back to herself. Elisa was  _ pretty _ sure that Maggie was sleeping in Derek's room anyway, but she would be happy to be able to go to home…

Well, the apartment was still her home for a little while longer, anyway. She was going to enjoy it while she could.

Goliath had come forward once more with Xanatos' offer for the penthouse apartment, and Elisa had to refuse once more.

"Not that it's not a great offer," Elisa said. "But beside the whole "renting from a known felon" thing, I couldn't afford the place."

Goliath frowned.

"Don't worry, big guy." Elisa said, placing a calming hand on his arm. "Xanatos will take care of the Labyrinth, and that's almost more than I am comfortable asking him for. I can hang out here for a while, but tomorrow, I am going to need to start looking for a place of my own so I don't have to worry about having to rent a storage space on top of everything else."

Goliath understood what she was saying… well,  _ most _ of what she had said… but that didn't stop him from worrying about her.

"I'll tell you what, Big Guy," Elisa said, seeing that he was still concerned. "When I find my new place, you guys can help me move."

"Of course," Goliath said without hesitation.

The Gargoyles had left an hour ago, with enough time to get back to the castle before sunrise.

Elisa wandered into her room to sleep. If she was able to get up early enough, she could have a little time left to apartment shop before going to work. It was going to be a tight schedule tomorrow, since she still had to go back to her apartment to change clothes for work first.

Gods, she did not want to have to move off of Manhattan Island if she could help it… But she couldn't stand living under Xanatos' watchful, scheming self, either. She would constantly be wondering if there were cameras or listening devices in her apartment, that she wouldn't be able to relax.

Granted, Xanatos had offered a penthouse and she wouldn't have to worry about the Gargoyles coming to visit, but she was afraid that she would be risking her job if anyone found out who owned the building.

Well, it was something that she was just going to have to think about later. For now, it was time to rest.


	19. Chapter 19

Elisa was drowning. The roaring of the water dominated her thoughts, washing any semblance of clear thought from her head. She couldn't move, could not find the surface for any precious air.

She was lost in the dark with no one to help this time.

Elisa came awake with a start. Breathing heavily, she fought her way free of her blankets.

She could still hear the water rushing past her. Over her. Sucking her down to the bottom…

Elisa clamped her hands over her ears, but she could still hear the water.

Two firm hands grabbed her wrists, making her jump.

Derek stood in front of her, and from the movement of his lips, he was talking to her.

Then suddenly, the water sound disappeared, and she could hear Derek's voice.

"Elisa!" He was demanding. "Are you alright?"

Elisa lowered her hands. "I'm fine, Derek, please don't shout anymore."

Derek huffed out a sigh and dropped his hands. "I was wondering what was going on."

"What?"

"Every shower, every faucet and every source of water down here was on and running. It was loud as hell, and you weren't answering us when we were calling for you."

"Sorry," Elisa said. "I didn't hear you."

"Elisa?" Maggie called breathlessly, as she skidded through the door of her room.

"I'm o.k., Maggie," Elisa answered. "Sorry you guys were worried."

"Who would turn on the water like that?" Maggie asked. "And why?"

"It was probably just some kind of prank," Derek said. "Now, it's still early in the morning, and I hear that you have to start working overnights again. Do you think you can go back to sleep?"

Elisa shook her head. "I don't think I could if I wanted to. But I have slept enough that I can get a jump start on the day."

Derek shook his head at her, "You sleep less than any other human on the face of the planet."

"After years of double shifts, hanging out with the Gargoyles, grabbing a couple hours worth of nap and starting all over again, I kind of got used to it." Elisa admitted. "I think I have slept more in the past few days than I have in a while."

"That's just sad," Derek said.

"Yeah, well," Elisa stood up and stretched. "Not that I don't love you bro, but I need to get dressed and get moving if I'm going to get anything done today."

"Get word to us if you need help," Maggie said.

"You got it," Elisa promised.

"When you are ready to go, let me know," Derek said from the doorway. "I'll give you a ride back to your apartment."

Elisa shuddered.

"Oh, I'll go slow." Derek said, smirking. "Baby."

Elisa through her pillow at him. "Get lost furball."

Derek's laugh echoed down the hall as he and Maggie left Elisa to get ready to reclaim a little more of her life topside.

Elisa gathered her bag of things, and made her way to the center of the Labyrinth.

Derek took her bag from her and was fastening it to his ATV when a movement caught Elisa's attention.

Turning her head, she caught a glimpse of a man, draped in a tattered coat with the hood wrapped tightly so that it covered most of his face. Elisa had the impression of striking blue eyes before the man hurriedly turned away to disappear into the maze of rooms.

"Derek...I thought you had said that the people here had left for safety reasons."

Derek finished tying the bag to the vehicle, and turned to Elisa, "To my knowledge, they  _ have _ all left. Until we get that hole fixed and are sure that nothing else is going to fall down, it is safer for people topside."

"Hmmm," Elisa said, slowly. "You may want to double check, Derek. Someone is still down here."

"Well," Derek said. "That is their choice. I won't turn anyone away unless there is good reason, and if they want to take their chances here instead of there, they are welcome."

Elisa nodded slowly. "Just… Be careful, Derek. I don't know what it was about that guy, but…"

Derek grinned. "Cop instinct?"

" _ Gut _ instinct," Elisa corrected. "Just be careful, o.k.?"

"You got it sis," he said, taking a seat and starting the engine. "Your chariot awaits. Let's go."

Deep in the shadows of the Labyrinth, the lone man chuckled to himself.

**_What are the odds?_ ** He wondered to himself. Imagine, him hiding out in the Labyrinth with all of the filthy homeless, and who should make an appearance? The head Gargoyle lover, herself.

She chose to betray the human race by siding with these creatures, and had even managed to seduce her brother to her side. It was her fault that his brother had sided with the Gargoyles.  _ Her fault  _ that Jason had thrown himself in front of that energy bolt instead of just letting him eliminate the leader of the pack of creatures.

He had witnessed the accident that almost did the job for him. If she had just drowned that night, then his job would have been so much easier.

The result of her near drowning had its benefits, though, much to his surprise. She was obviously terrified of water now. He had seen her reactions, as well as heard rumors from the other "concerned citizens" down in this pit, and decided to put them to the test.

Very early this morning, he had made his way to the bathing areas. He had had to be fast, but he had managed to turn every water tap he could get his hands on. He had made as much noise as possible, and stood back to see his results.

Elisa had woken, obviously afraid and practically paralyzed in fear.

He could almost taste it, and it was a heady experience. One he intended on experiencing again soon.

In the meantime, he had slipped a note in her gym bag.

Just a little note for her to find soon to remind her that she was not always going to have the monsters around to protect her.

He had plans for the large, black furred monstrosity that ran the Labyrinth. Derek, or "Talon" as he was called by the residents of the underground shelter, was Elisa's brother.

Jon firmly believed in the old adage of "an eye for an eye". Elisa took his siblings away from him, so Jon thought it was only right that he should repay the favor.

Elisa found the note while she'd been digging for her badge and gun that she had reclaimed from the locked security rooms in the Labyrinth.

It was small, and she had almost overlooked it, but as she had brought out her shoulder holster, it had fluttered to the ground. It was only a small piece of newspaper that had been carefully folded into fourths. Elisa lifted it and opened it, thinking it was from Derek.

What she found, however, was a picture from the newspaper that was of the protesters at the police station only days ago. Some of the signs even had her face on it.

Written across the picture, in big bold red letters was a single word.

**Traitor.**

Elisa stared at the blood red letters.

Whoever had left this in her bag, had been in the Labyrinth. They had been watching…

And if they have a hate for the gargoyles, they may feel the same about the mutates.

Elisa dropped everything and ran to the telephone. She had to dial the number twice, because her hands were shaking so badly.

"Hello."

"Derek, thank god," Elisa said.

"Elisa?" He asked, alerted by the sound in her voice. "What's wrong?"

"Derek, I need you guys on alert down there." Elisa told her brother what she had found. "Whoever it is, was in there today. The note was with my gun, and it sure as hell wasn't there when I packed it. There are someone in the Labyrinth who don't like me very much, as a supporter of the anti-Gargoyle people at best, a rabid fanatic at worst. They may feel the same way about you guys."

"Elisa," Derek said, trying to calm her down. "Don't worry about us. We can take care of ourselves. You keep your gun on you, and be careful until you are around other people."

"I will," she promised.

"If you need to come back down here, you come down."

"Derek, I'm more worried about you guys. There are a million places for someone to hide down there."

"We are going to go through and sweep the place right now," He promised.

"There was that one guy I saw," Elisa said. "Ratty brown coat. The hood was pulled shut, but I saw his eyes. Bright blue eyes. No idea of hair color, but he had a mustache."

"Got it," Derek said. "Be careful, Elisa. I hate that you're there alone right now."

"I know," Elisa said, looking around. "I'll call and check in in a little while. I need to come up with some other options."

"I want to hear from you once an hour until you go to work."

"You got it," Elisa promised.

Elisa hung up the telephone just in time for a knock to sound at the door. She un- holstered her weapon, and approached the door cautiously. She crept quietly to the door with the intention of looking through the peephole, when a letter slid under the door.

Elisa reached down and glanced quickly at it. It was on official looking paper, with the letterhead of a law firm in Manhattan. The name rung a bell, but Elisa couldn't recall where she had heard it before.

The letter stated that they had been trying to reach her for a few days, and that she needed to contact them. There was a phone number listed on the letter, and Elisa decided to give it a call.

It was answered by a perky female secretary, who placed her on hold while she got one of the firm's lawyers on the phone. While she was waiting, Elisa did something that she hadn't done in years, since meeting the Gargoyles.

She locked her windows and pulled the curtains shut. She couldn't be sure that whoever had written the note wasn't watching her place right now.

"Ms. Maza?" came a kindly elderly man's voice.

"That's me," Elisa said, confused. "I got a notice to call you."

"Ah, yes," He said. "Sorry about sending someone to your home that way, but we were unable to reach you by telephone."

"I was out of town," She lied. "What can I help you with?"

"Well," he said with a chuckle. "I may have some great news for you."

"That would be a nice switch," Elisa muttered.

"Excuse me?"

"Sorry, just thinking out loud." Elisa said.

"Oh, I do that fairly often anymore," He said.

Elisa rolled her eyes.

"My firm represents Mr Jason Canmore."

Elisa paused. "Okay."

"It seems," he said, "That Mr. Canmore has set aside a large amount of money, and some property that he owns that he would like to be signed over to you as soon as possible."

"I'm sorry," Elisa said, confused. "I don't understand."

"Mr. Canmore has accepted that he will be incarcerated fairly soon because of his actions," The lawyer said. "He gave me permission to speak freely with you, as you were there when the events happened. Mr. Canmore wished to express his gratitude for all that you and a few select others have done to help him and his sister."

"I…" Elisa stuttered. "I don't expect anything in return, and if I do accept anything…"

"You will not be an effective witness at his hearing," the lawyer concluded. "I told him as much, and he has insisted that this is the course of action that he wishes to take. He signed a confession this morning with myself and the DA in attendance. Once he is cleared to leave the hospital, he will be transferred to a minimum security facility while he continues his recovery and continued health care."

Elisa was stunned.

"Before he met with the DA, he asked me to transfer a good amount of money into an account in your name only. He also had me purchase a property that recently went on the market as an investment property, again, in your name."

"Property?" Gads, she wished she could form a complete sentence. She was sounding like an idiot to herself.

"It is nothing big," The lawyer hurried to assure her. "It is a 3 bedroom penthouse condo at the Jade building in Chelsea. It is nothing fancy," He added, "But it is completely paid for, including the monthly building dues for the first year. You will have to take over the dues after the first year, but all other costs have been covered."

"I don't…"

"Legally, it is sound." The lawyer said. "Everything is completely in your name, and since you will not actually be testifying on his behalf, you will not have to worry about it appearing as if he were bribing you."

Elisa had to sit down. "It… It sounds wonderful."

"Mr Canmore was concerned that you were losing your home because of his actions, and felt the need to make it right. He had a considerable fortune built up from generations of his family, and wanted to make what reparations he could. He donated a considerable amount toward the rebuilding of Saint Damien's Cathedral as well."

"What about when he gets out?" Elisa wondered. "He can't do all of this, and leave himself and his siblings with no kind of support."

"I urged him to hold some in reserve," He said. "There have been three accounts set up, one in each of his siblings names for when they get out of jail. Robyn was in complete agreement with the arrangements."

"Wait," Elisa said. "Not all three Canmore kids are in jail."

"Jon will receive his only after he has turned himself in and served the entirety of his sentence."

"Ah," Elisa said. "You and Jason really thought of everything."

"Jason did," the lawyer said. "I simply helped with the details. I have taken care of the condo purchase, and have the keys at my office. If you can come by at your convenience, we can get your signature on the final paperwork as well."

"Oh. Okay." Elisa was still a little shellshocked. She looked at her clock, "I can be there in…" she checked the clock on the wall, "about an hour?"

"I will be here and have everything ready."

"Thank you," Elisa said.

She hung up the telephone, and sat in a stunned silence. She had a home. A penthouse, near the castle, near work and rent free. She could reclaim a bit of her life that had been so disrupted, and wouldn't have to worry about where she was going to live anymore.

Now she just had to pack.

Elisa groaned.

The packing could wait. First she had to get ready for work, and head over to the lawyer's office to collect her new keys.

She was heading out the door, when another unwelcome thought hit.

Damn it! Her car! Her car was still sitting, according to Matt, in a police impound lot.

Frustrated, Elisa called Matt and begged for a ride.

Twenty minutes later, Matt called to let her know that he was outside. Elisa grabbed her NYPD nylon windbreaker jacket and hurried out the door.

She stopped short at the doorway.

Matt was there, leaning against  _ her _ car.

"Oh, my god, Matt," Elisa said. "You have no idea just how much I appreciate this."

Matt smiled. "You honestly think that I would leave your car, that you love almost more than life itself, at an impound lot?"

Elisa smiled, and ran her hands along the hood. "Thanks Matt. Hey, what happened to it?"

"First of all, your mechanic loves you." Matt laughed. "Because you insist on parking in front of the station, when the clock tower blew, your car got hit with a lot of falling rock. There were already bullet marks and paint damage from your off road shootout a week ago, so it needed fixed anyway."

"I forgot about all of the damage," Elisa said.

"Well, I thought it would be as good a time as any to get it taken care of, and had it towed to the shop." He laughed a little. "When they heard that you had been hurt, they did the whole thing for free."

"Thank you, Matt." Elisa gave her partner a hug. "I owe you one."

"You better believe it." Matt said. "I'm keeping a tally."

Elisa shook her head. "I won't live long enough to pay you back for that list, and you know it."

They got in the car, and off they were to visit the lawyers who had worked miracles to help her.


	20. Chapter 20

The keys to her new home were a welcome weight in her pocket, Elisa entered the 19th precinct station house. She followed Matt to their temporary desks, and took a seat.

Around her, people were yelling, waving papers around, and phones were ringing. It was the disorganized chaos that was so familiar to her, that it was almost a comfort.

"Oh, yeah," Elisa said, sinking into the hard wooden desk chair.

"Glad to be back?" Matt asked.

"Need you ask?"

"Probably not."

"How's the task force coming along?" Elisa asked.

"Oh, you know," Matt said, sorting the stack of mail and telephone messages that littered his desk.

"Matt," Elisa said, warningly. "What's going on?"

Matt sighed. "We are in the final stages of planning and organizing the team."

"And?"

" _ And _ ," Matt finished reluctantly, "As soon as the team is completed, I'm moving to the task force full time."

"OK," Elisa said, slowly. "What does that entail?"

"Full night shifts, training and investigating with the team."

Elisa finally caught on. "You're not going to be able to be my partner anymore, are you?"

"No," he said. "And the Captain hasn't said anything about reassigning you another partner."

"It might happen, though," Elisa said. "Another person for me to lie to and worry about them seeing the Gargoyles."

"I think that's  _ why _ she hasn't assigned you anyone yet."

"One can hope," Elisa said. "When do you do the changeover?"

"They want me there by the end of the week."

"Well," Elisa said, getting to her feet. "If this is going to be our last few days working together, for the foreseeable future anyway, what do you say we go for a drive and find something interesting to do?"

"Yes," Matt said, grabbing his trenchcoat from the back of his chair. "For the love of all that is good and holy in this world, yes."

Elisa laughed. "Has it been that bad?"

"You have no idea."

"I hate moving," Elisa complained later that night. It was almost 10:30 at night, and so far nothing exciting had happened. They had driven around for almost an hour before deciding to stop for something to eat.

Matt and Elisa had gone to a burger joint on East 60th, and were trying to eat their greasy food before something happened to call them away. It had been a quiet night so far, but they never knew when something could call them away. Normally, Elisa tried to avoid fast food places like this, but there were just some times that it was unavoidable.

And then there were sometimes that Elisa could not find it in her to care.

"I'm not going to help you move, by the way." Matt said, picking the onions off of his greasy, paper wrapped burger.

"I'm not asking you to," Elisa said. She pointed at him with a french fry. "Since I don't have to worry about rent or a deposit on a new place, I am going to  _ hire _ people to do it."

"Plus, you have the clan for any heavy lifting."

"Well, there is that." She said with a grin.

The radio crackled to life. "Attention units in the area of 68th and Lexington. Reports of vandalism in progress."

Elisa hurriedly stuffed what was left of her fries back in the take out bag.

"Well, you wanted something to do tonight, right?" Matt said.

Elisa grabbed the radio. "Dispatch, we are in the area, and are en route. ETA ten minutes."

Matt grabbed the red bubble light from the dash and put it on the roof. With lights and sirens, they were off.

Elisa turned off of 60th Street and turned North on 3rd Ave. She wove in and out like a true champion driver, making it to the area of the incident in slightly less than her ten minute estimate. Turning off the light and siren, Elisa slowed to a crawl to find out where the complaint had come from.

"Do you see anything?" Elisa asked, straining to see in the dark.

"Not a thing," Matt said. He picked up the radio and called dispatch for a confirmation of the location.

On the corner of 68th and Lexington, the constant construction and remodeling had almost permanently blocked off the view to or from the sidewalk. Instead, all you could see was scaffolding and orange construction fencing.

Confirming with the assignment desk, Elisa pulled her car over across the street from the 116 building on 68th. She pulled into a space, across from the college buildings there, and both she and Matt started their walk. They strolled casually down the block, careful to peek in alleyways.

Arm in arm, appearing more like a couple than a couple of cops, they made their way down the street.

The sound of an empty spray paint can hitting pavement reached their ears. Instantly, the two detectives were heading in that direction. The sound had come from an alleyway that was barely wide enough for Elisa and Matt to walk side by side.

Elisa drew her weapon, held down at her side, and edged her way out front. Step by step, one foot in front of the other, the partners made their way down the alley. Just before reaching the end, a tall figure in a grey hoodie sweatshirt ran out the other end of the alley and into the night.

"Damn," Matt muttered. He grabbed his radio and relayed the figure's direction and description.

"Let's see what we have here," Elisa holstered her weapon. Turning, she was puzzled to see a very child-like stick figure-ish drawing of a person.

"That's it?" Matt asked. "A stick figure?"

"I know," Elisa said, disgusted. "All this for a stick figure… not even a good one, either."

"Hey, we've got the can over here." Matt called to her.

"I'll get it," Elisa said, pulling a pair of rubber gloves from her jacket pocket. Gently, she picked up the can and carried it towards her car. She had a dusting kit there, and she could try to grab some prints from the can.

Just before she exited the alley, there was a loud whoosh and thump. Elisa stopped and smiled. "Hey, Matt?"

"Yeah?"

"Can you take care of this for me?" Elisa asked. "I will be right there."

Matt smiled, indulgently. "I'm on it." He put on gloves of his own, and took the can from her. "But don't be too long."

Elisa smiled. "I'll try to make this quick."

Turning, Elisa walked back into the alley.

Goliath was there, his form dwarfing the small alleyway.

Elisa smiled at him as she approached. "Goliath," she leaned in to give him a hug. "How do you always find me?"

Goliath's strong arms closed around her. "I never stop looking for you."

"Good answer," Elisa said.

"We were told that you were able to go back to work today." Goliath said, "You were not wearing your communicator."

"I'm sorry," Elisa said. "Things went a little crazy for a while this afternoon, and I forgot it in my lock box at my apartment. I ran out of time to go back and get it before work."

Goliath frowned. "What has happened?"

Elisa gave a small laugh. "It's too long of a story for right now," Elisa said. "How about I meet up with you back at the castle after my shift."

He didn't seem to like that answer. "Should I not stay near, in case you need me?"

"I'm still nervous about you all being out here," Elisa admitted. "Honestly, though, I  _ would _ feel a little better knowing that you were here. There is one bit of news that I need to share with you all."

She told him about the news clipping and her worries for Derek, Maggie and Claw.

Goliath gave her shoulder a comforting squeeze. "I will tell the clan of the trouble. The trio can go help with the repairs and help keep an eye on your brother."

"That would be great, Big Guy." Elisa said, feeling like a weight was finally lifting off of her shoulders. "It will be easy, being that Derek, Maggie and Claw there. The humans were all moved out after… after the storm."

"Elisa," Matt called from the street. "We've got another call."

Elisa sighed. "Back to work."

"I shall go to the castle and get the trio." He reached up to remove his communicator. "You may take my communicator, and I will get another when I arrive there."

"Sounds good, Big Guy."

"Be safe, and I shall see you again soon."

"You be safe, too, Goliath." Elisa said.

He turned and began scaling the side of the building.

Elisa made her way back to the car. "Matt, what's going on?" She asked, as she opened the driver's side door and slid in.

Matt opened his car door and got in. "It's a report of some creepy guy hanging out at a restaurant on the Manhattan side of the Brooklyn bridge."

Elisa started the car and turned in that direction. "Define "creepy". What's going on?"

Matt shrugged. "It sounds like we are going to have a rash of vandalism tonight. There is a guy who is hanging around, and a witness says that he was painting something on the back of the building before he took off."

"Wait," Elisa said. "He's not still there, is he?"

"No," Matt confirmed. "But he made the witness nervous enough that she is insisting that someone come and check it out."

"Ungh," Elisa groaned. "Witness statements mean more paperwork."

"You can't escape it forever," Matt said.

"Maybe not, but I can always dream."

**Midnight**

"What in the world…" Elisa drifted off, as they pulled up behind the restaurant. True to the report, there was a badly formed piece of graffiti on the red brick wall.

"Looks familiar," Matt said.

"Yeah."

Elisa stared at the spray painted stick figure. This time, the figure was in the bottom of a large cylinder shape. "What is it?"

"I have not to foggiest," Matt admitted. "Let's go talk to the witness."

Together, the duo walked to the front of the restaurant.

It turned out that the witness was one of the waitresses, a young hispanic female, who had interrupted the vandal when she had taken the trash out. She was a little unnerved, that was sure.

Once she had calmed down, and given her statement, Elisa and Matt offered to walk her to her car so that she would feel safe. The girl thanked them profusely, and accepted their help.

As the girl drove away, Elisa went back to the rear of the building to look around.

Something was bothering her about the whole night so far, but she was having a hard time putting her thoughts together. She stared at the painted figure on the wall.

"Weird, huh?" Matt said, coming up to stand beside her.

"Yeah," Elisa said. "I wonder what it's supposed to mean."

"If it means anything."

Elisa nodded. "I guess." She turned to leave, but the toe of her shoe hit something hollow. She looked down with a start. "Hey Matt, we have another can here."

Matt walked over to look at it. "Same color. Same brand."

"Same guy?" Elisa asked.

"Maybe," Matt put on another set of gloves and collected the can. "I guess we can run these down to the station and have them looked at."

Once they were back in the car, Elisa started the engine but didn't immediately go. Her eyes had drifted to the "Grand Opening" banner.

"Matt, I didn't ever get the name of this place," Elisa said. "Just their address. They just opened, and their signs aren't up yet."

"Its called El Cazador or something."

Elisa's head turned to look at him, "Are you sure?"

"Yeah," he frowned. "What's the matter."

"Maybe nothing," Elisa said, slowly. "El Cazador is Spanish for 'The Hunter'. It surprised me, that's all."

"Huh," Matt said. "That's odd."

"What's odd?"

"Either we both have the Hunters on the brain, or there's something else going on here."

"Matt," Elisa said warningly. "Help me out here."

"The first scene that we went to, was across the street from Hunter College." He looked at Elisa.

Elisa felt a headache coming on. "Do you think it's just a creep who has too much time on their hands?"

"Do you?"

"I don't know, Matt." Elisa admitted. "How about we get the paint cans to forensics, and see if they can get any hits on the prints."


	21. Chapter 21

**1:00 a.m.**

"Do you have any idea of how long it could take to get a match?"

The disbelieving voice belonged to a tiny forensics expert, deep within the basement of the 19th precinct. She was cute, and predictably dressed in black, and looked like she should be attending a rave party rather than sweating over machines and ballistic reports all day.

Elisa looked at the girl's name tag. "Pamela," Elisa wheedled. "I know it would take a long time, but I have a feeling that the prints belong to one particular person. Is there any way to call up the file and do a straight comparison instead of having to search the entire database?"

Pamela tried to look a little disgruntled, but her curiosity had been tweaked. "Yeah, that I can have done in a few minutes after getting the file."

Matt nodded at her computer, which was currently in screensaver mode with a flying NYPD shield on it.

"They are in the system. I scanned them in myself when he hadn't been apprehended."

Pamela looked relieved. "O.K. I can have it for you soon. Who am I looking up?"

"The name is Jon Canmore," Matt said.

Elisa felt like a third wheel. Matt and Pamela were practically hip to hip, looking at the files on the computer. She was telling him about her new machine and how it helped to speed up the AFIS searches. Matt was hanging on her every word.

**_Huh_** , Elisa thought to herself. **_I wonder how long_** **that** **_has been going on…_**

It was cute, really. The Forensics Expert and the Conspiracy Theorist.

There was a police scanner in the corner, turned low. There was a constant stream of voices going, some were communicating with the dispatchers, some were from officer to officer and some were checking in with smart ass comments between friends. It was enough constant chatter that Elisa had almost tuned it out, but one report came through, loud and clear.

"Attention officers. Vandalism reported at 3-6-8 Broadway. Suspect is still present at time of report."

Elisa glanced at Matt, and saw that the report had not gone unnoticed.

"What do you think?" He asked.

Elisa sighed. "Let's go."

"I'll give you a shout when I get the results," Pamela promised.

"Thanks, Pam," Matt called over his shoulder.

Elisa had the good graces to wait until they were out of earshot before poking at her partner. "Pam, huh?"

Matt wouldn't meet her eyes, and seemed a little overly occupied concentrating on the stairs in front of him.

"Are you blushing?" Elisa was surprised. She didn't think anything ever affected Matt like that.

Matt muttered something that she couldn't quite make out, but she got the gist of it.

He didn't want to talk about it.

Elisa grinned. At least something good was coming out of this crazy shift.

**1:30 a.m.**

The scene was a real estate office building.

Hunter Home Equity, to be specific. It was too much of a coincidence for Elisa's taste, and firmly planted the belief that it was Jon Canmore, or something that he had orchestrated.

The print results had come in, and Pamela had contacted them on the way to the scene. Prints from both cans were from two different people, neither one of them was Jon.

That didn't really surprise Elisa. The Canmores were smart as hell. Jon had probably recruited people to do this for him. The incidents were happening too close in time together, and spaced too far apart through the city for one person to get from one place to the other.

The artwork on this building was similar to the others, with one difference. The stick figure was there, in the tube shape, but this time there was a water faucet posed above it.

Elisa had a hunch that if there was another one, what was going to happen to it.

"I don't like this," Matt said.

"Neither do I," Elisa admitted.

As with the other scenes, there was a single spray paint can there. It was tagged and collected, as the others were, and would be taken to Pamela as soon as they could get there.

"I can't shake the feeling that this is Jon," Elisa said. "We don't know what happened to him after he left the chapel, and he may still be in the area."

"But what's with the street art?"

"I have a theory," Elisa said slowly. "And I hope I'm wrong."

Matt turned to her. "O.K., let's put this together." He pulled his notebook out. "The graffiti, the Hunter references, what are we missing?"

Elisa ran her hand through her hair. "I don't know, but it feels like we are missing something big."

"We're going to figure this out," Matt tried to reassure her.

Another officer came around the corner towards them. "Hey," the officer called. "There was another one. Same M.O."

Elisa frowned. "Where?"

The officer shrugged. "Some place in the Bronx, just over the bridge. Do you guys want to go, since you've been following these?"

Elisa nodded. "Sure."

"These are some really crazy vandals," the officer muttered. "They are being really freaking random. How are we supposed to catch these guys?"

"Really random," Elisa muttered.

"What if they aren't random?" Matt asked her. "Let's look at these places. Other than the Hunter names, where have we been tonight?"

"The college at Lexington and 68th," Elisa ticked off on her fingers, "The restaurant in Brooklyn. The Realtor's Office…" She trailed off, finally making the connection. "Lexington, Broadway, Brooklyn…"

Matt caught on. "And now some place in the Bronx."

"It's the clan," Elisa said. She ran for the car and hopped in. While Matt followed up on the latest report, Elisa got on the communicator.

"Goliath, are you there?"

"Yes, Elisa." His voice came through loud and clear.

"Are you at the castle?"

"Yes."

"Is everyone still there, or have they left yet?"

"They are readying for the trip," Goliath said. "What has happened?"

"Keep everyone at the castle," Elisa urged. "Trust me on this, and stay there. I'll be there as soon as I can."

"What has happened?" Goliath asked again.

"Nothing yet, Goliath," Elisa said, navigating the streets as fast as she felt she safely could. "I just have a bad feeling, and if I'm right, you guys are safer there at the castle right now."

"We would be able to help you," He insisted.

"I'm not alone, I have Matt with me. Besides, it's not me that I'm worried about, Goliath." Elisa said. "I think Jon Canmore is back in the city. If I'm right, then he's been messing with me all night."

"Do not worry about us, Elisa," Goliath assured her. "But do not go anywhere without Matt. If Jon is planning anything, you need not put yourself in harm's way."

"I don't plan on it, Big Guy." Elisa said, as she was pulling into the address that they had been given. "Stay safe, stay indoors and I will see you soon."

Elisa cut the connection as she looked at the building that housed Hunter Ambulance and Medical Transport.

"Damn," Matt said. "Well, at least we have an idea of who is doing this."

"Yeah," Elisa said softly. She was looking at the latest spray painted art, and gave a shudder.

In the picture, the faucet had turned on, and the glass was filling up. The stickfigure was no longer touching the bottom of the glass.

"But where is he?" She wondered.

**2:30 a.m.**

"I'm sorry, detective," Pamela said. "I have dusted and run all of the prints that I have found on all four of the spray paint cans, but no two cans were handled by the same person, and none of them are your suspect's prints." She grimaced as she admitted, "If I had to make a guess, based on the sheer number and the degradation of the prints, I'd say that they point to the people at the store where the paint was sold. There is a powder residue on them that suggests latex gloves were used."

Elisa sighed. "Damn."

"Thank you for the speedy work, Pam," Matt said.

"No problem, detective." Pam smiled, "If you have anything else that you need help with, just let me know and I'll get on it. I feel bad that I couldn't help you with these."

Pamela walked to her bank of computers, four of which were running identification programs. "I went ahead and expanded the search in the AFIS system. If whoever used these paint cans are in the system, we should get identification in a few hours at most."

"That's great," Elisa said.

"Well…" Pamela seemed at a loss. "I will let you know when I find anything."

"Thanks again," Matt said and turned to leave.

Elisa saw the flash of disappointment in Pamela's eyes before she covered it with a bright smile. "No worries."

Elisa turned and followed Matt out. She gave him a slap to the back of the head.

"Ow," He said, rubbing the sting. "What the hell, Elisa?"

"You really are clueless sometimes," Elisa said with a laugh. "That girl  _ likes _ you, Bluestone."

"Huh?"

Elisa stopped in her tracks and threw him a disgusted look. "If you don't go back in there and ask that woman out for breakfast after work, I'm going to seriously have to re-evaluate my opinion on your intelligence level."

He blinked at her.

Elisa pointed towards the lab. "Go. Ask. Her. Out."

A slow grin made its way across his face. He turned and made his way back to the lab.

Elisa continued on the the squad room. She sat at her desk and made a list.

Broadway, Brooklyn, Lexington, Bronx… She wanted to get ahead of these people, but there were only so many "Hunter" named businesses left in the Manhattan area. They were going to stay in the area, she was sure, because she wouldn't be able to go much farther out without having to deal with jurisdictional issues.

If they were really after her, then they would have to stay nearby. If they were after the clan, they were safe in that super powered, high tech and just  _ this _ side of legally armed castle. There were probably a good share of  _ illegally _ armed parts of the castle, but she was choosing to not ask about them.

"Hey, detective," Came a chipper female voice. Elisa looked up and spotted Marlene, the phone dispatcher. "Man, tonight is not your night."

"What's going on?" Elisa asked.

"No one told you?" Marlene frowned. "Your vandal just struck again, in a big way, I guess. Big damn building, this time."

"Where?" Elisa demanded.

Marlene blinked. "Over at the World Financial Center. The whole south side of the building is covered by this freaky image."

Elisa grabbed her keys.

She ran to the lab, but Elisa couldn't find either Matt or Pamela.

She knew that she should wait for Matt, but she also needed to go to the site and see what was going on. It fit the pattern with the Clan's names, Hudson or Goliath was up next and the terminal was on the banks of the Hudson River.

On a light traffic day, if such things existed in Manhattan, the terminal itself was almost half an hour away. She didn't want to have to wait for Matt to leave the lab, and get to the car.  **_Let him have his time with the pretty lady_ ** , she thought. After Matt had put up with Elisa for so long, he needed to find a nice girl.

She ran out the door. She would call Matt, and have him join her there. She hopped in the car, and she was off.

She was well on her way when she did as she had promised herself. She called dispatch to tell Matt where she was going, requesting that he join her as soon as he could be located.

**3:10 a.m.**

Elisa came to an abrupt halt in the parking lot of the terminal. She made sure that her badge was visible on her belt as she waded through the crowd of onlookers.

This one was more detailed than the rest. It was huge, vibrant with color and it had definitely taken time to complete. The water was overflowing in the glass, and the figure, now definitely a woman with long black hair and dressed in red and black, was floating face down on the bottom of the glass.

Elisa took a deep breath, held it and let it out slow. It helped, but there was still a troubling tightness to her chest.

Elisa found a single paint can, similar to the other scenes. This time, however, there was an arrow painted on the pavement beside the can.

Elisa turned her gaze in the direction of the arrow, and her gaze landed on the construction area across the parking lot. The sign on the fencing proclaimed it a project of The Hunter Roberts Construction Group.

Elisa waded through the crowd of police that were wandering around, processing the scene. She stopped on the edge of the fenced off construction area and surveyed the scene. She wasn't even sure what she was looking for, but she had one of those gut feelings that there was something here.

Glancing behind her, she made sure that she was not being watched, and slipped through a hole that had been cut in the chain link fencing.

Looking around at the construction site, it consisted of the metal beams and framework of what looked to be an office building. The skeleton of the building appeared to be around 10 stories high already, and was high enough off of the ground to require a pair of cranes to continue the construction. It was surrounded by ground that was still more mud than anything else, with small groupings of construction vehicles scattered through the grounds. Piles of building materials and concrete pipeline were strewn about in a scene of barely organized chaos.

Elisa hesitated a moment, drew her weapon, then started picking her way through. She kept to the shadows, unsure of what… or who… was waiting for her. Construction had long since ceased for the day, and the only light was that of the waning moon and flashing police cruisers.

The flashing of the red and blue lights from the police cruisers gave the scene a surreal look. The strobing effect was wreaking havoc on her night vision, making even the inanimate objects appear to come alive and start to move.

It took her longer than she would have liked to make her way to the building, but she had made it without incident. She wound her way through the structure, using the shadows and beans to remain as hidden as she could.

She completed a tour of the building and found nothing. With a sigh, she holstered her weapon.

Damn. She'd been so sure that there would be something here. A note, a person, a clue to whatever crazy scavenger hunt that she was on.

Elisa turned and made her way back to the crime scene. She was backtracking along the fence when she heard her name being called.

"Elisa?" Matt was calling. "Elisa, are you in there?"

"Hey, Matt!" Elisa called, looking for the opening in the fence that she'd come through the first time.

"Jesus, Maza," Matt called, jogging toward the fence. "Way to wait for me."

"You were busy," Elisa said with a grin, waiting for him on her side of the fence. "So...are you guys going to meet up for breakfast after shift?"

"Wouldn't you like to know."

"Actually, I would, but that's just to keep myself from going insane."

"You're not going insane," Matt said, walking beside her along the fence line, towards the opening.

"Then why do I feel like I'm going crazy, Matt?" Elisa said. "Honestly, I feel like…"

A piercing pain in the back of her right shoulder, causing her to cry out and stumble into the fence in surprise. In a reaction to the sudden pain, Elisa slapped a hand as far back on her shoulder as she could. Her fingers hit something small and hard, she grasped it and pulled it away from her.

She held it up to the light before she realized that she had seen this kind of object before. Often enough to know it was an injection dart, most often used in zoos and by bad guys for tranquilizers. Elisa raised her eyes and met Matt's startled gaze.

A similar dart shot out and hit him in the front of his left shoulder.

"Oh, god," Elisa muttered, trying to catch herself by grabbing the fence.

Matt turned and shouted for help before he collapsed under the influence of the tranquilizer.

Elisa stumbled, her vision swimming before her. Her body was suddenly heavy, and her fingers lost her grip on the dart.

She heard voices coming in their direction, flashlights bouncing as those who had heard Matt's call for help began running toward them, getting closer before everything went dark.

The last thing that she remembered was the sensation of falling.


	22. Chapter 22

She awoke some time later with the worst headache she had ever had.

It took her a few precious moments to make her eyes focus enough to figure out where she was.

She was bound to an old wooden chair, her arms tied at the elbow to the back spindles of the chair, her hands fastened at the wrists behind her. Her legs had fared no better, rope wrapping around her legs several times between the knees and ankles. Her head had been bowed in front of her while she'd been out, and she tried to use that to her advantage. Instead of raising her head and possibly alerting whomever might be in the room with her, she tried to take in as much of the room as she could moving only her eyes.

Looking through her eyelashes, she was dismayed at what she found. The walls were a bare, corrugated metal and the windows were covered in newspapers that allowed a filtered amount of light through. For all appearances, it looked to be an old warehouse. That didn't narrow things down much, as Manhattan was surrounded by warehouse districts, but it was a start.

Despite the news sheets covering the windows, she could see that it was daylight out. Gods, how long had she been out?

Elisa finally decided to chance it and tried to lift her head. She couldn't quite stifle the whimper that escaped her.

"Ah, you're awake," came a smooth, accented voice.

Elisa raised her head fully, her neck and head still throbbing with the pain of being at such an odd angle. She forced her eyes to focus, and found herself sitting next to the last remaining Hunter.

Jon Canmore was the youngest of the three Hunter siblings. Elisa remembered seeing him on the television as his alter ego as a newscaster. This close to him, she could see how handsome he might have been, if it hadn't been for the madness that was lighting his eyes from within.

"I can see that you recognize me," Jon said, casually. "Good, so I won't have to worry about the formalities of introducing myself."

"No, there's no reason to pretend to be civil," Elisa snarled.

"Now, now, detective," Jon chastised. "There's no reason to be rude."

"I'd say being drugged and tied to a chair is pretty rude." Elisa shot back.

"Necessary, not rude." He corrected.

Elisa looked around surreptitiously. She was worried about Matt, but couldn't find any trace that there was anyone else here.

"Looking for someone," Jon taunted.

Elisa said nothing.

"If it makes you feel any better, I left your partner there for the other officers to find. I have no quarrel with him."

Elisa gave a silent sigh of relief. Thank goodness Matt was o.k. He wouldn't be dragged into this craziness, and he might be able to get help for her as well.

"But you do with me," Elisa said.

"Of course," He said, as if it were obvious. "You are in league with the creatures. Jason was the one who tried working with and around you, even fancied himself falling in love with you at one point, and look where it got him."

Elisa sent him a withering look. "Yes, because I'm the one that shot him. Oh, wait, that wasn't me. It was you who…"

Jon reaches out, quick as a snake and slapped her.

Elisa's head whipped to the side with the force of the strike, her ears ringing.

"Now look at what you made me do," he said, as if scolding an unruly child. "You really must learn when to be silent. I will have teach you to respect your betters."

"One problem with that," Elisa smirked, shaking her head to try to clear the fog that seemed to coat every thought she had in confusion."I'm a slow learner."

"That is a lesson for another day. We have some time yet, before those monsters come looking for you," Jon said casually. "For now, if you want to survive this night, I suggest that you reflect on your actions, and where your loyalty lies. After all, more than just  _ your _ life depends on your cooperation right now."

He patted her on the shoulder, as a teacher would encourage a student who was struggling with a lesson they were trying to teach.

Elisa clamped her jaw shut.  **_Don't mess with the crazy man_ ** , she chastised herself.

After Jon left, Elisa began struggling against her bonds with no luck. The knots were tight and well done. She couldn't seem to gain any headway… Not even an inch.

Elisa sighed, and leaned her head back. It was going to be a long day.

It wasn't in her to quit. Her fighting spirit was firmly encoded in her DNA, thanks to her parents. They had raised all of their children to be strong willed, with a firm grasp on right and wrong.

Her mother was an anthropologist, so Elisa and her siblings had been raised with tales of warriors and justice from different cultures, and strove to live up to them.

**_With your shield or on it._ **

That was an ancient saying that she had heard once, and it had made an impact on how she fought her own battles. In the days of the Spartans, the shields that they carried were heavy, metal and extremely large to give as much protection as possible. During battle, to return with your shield meant that they were victorious and the warriors were treated to the respect due to such a fearless champion. If a warrior paid the ultimate price and died in battle, they were carried home upon their shield and were treated with the respect due to a fallen hero.

To return without your shield, that was a sign that the warrior had left their shield behind to run away and save himself, and were seen as a coward.

The day that Elisa had graduated from the academy, her father had repeated that phrase to her as he tapped her shiny new shield-shaped badge on her uniform.

**_With your shield or on it…_ **

That had been the battle cry of the Maza children when they were younger, fighting their imaginary battles in their backyard. Nerf gun wars, board games and pillow fights.

Now that she was grown, she was in for a hell of a fight. She'd be damned if she just rolled over and took what he dished out to her.

Elisa renewed her efforts, feeling the ropes dig and scrape against her skin. She felt when the ropes finally broke skin, and felt the blood rivulets dripping down her hands. her muscles were starting to scream at being held immobile in such hard angles.

With a sigh, Elisa had to stop for a while. She needed to conserve her strength for the fight ahead.

The late afternoon sun was coloring the sky, lending a tinge of fiery orange to the newspaper covering the windows.

Something had to happen soon, Elisa was thinking. She was tired, stiff, sore, and her wrists and ankles were all rubbed raw from the ropes.

On top of everything, she really had to pee. She may be tied to a chair, prisoner of a madman, but she was damned if she would give him the satisfaction of embarrassing her like that. Besides, if he would let her go to the bathroom, maybe she could find an escape route.

Jon came strolling in, seemingly without a care in the world. "Now then," he said. "The day seems to have finally be ending, and the sun will set in a little over an hour."

"Now what?" Elisa asked.

"Now, we go for a ride."

"I have to go to the bathroom," Elisa ground out.

Jon grimaced in disgust.

"Hey," Elisa said with a shrug. "If you would rather I wet my pants while you haul me around…"

With a long suffering sigh, Jon untied her legs and the ropes at her elbows. He picked her up, leaving her wrists still tied behind her back, and carried her to the small bathroom. He set her down just inside the door, took a knife from his boot and finally cut the ropes at her wrists.

"You have two minutes," He said angrily, slamming the door behind him.

Elisa rotated her wrists, trying to encourage the blood flow back to normal. She winced at the pain she felt, and noticed that the places that the ropes had broken the skin on her wrists had begun to scab over. The rotating motion had caused some of the scabbed over areas to break open again.

Elisa took care of her immediate needs, all the while scanning the small bathroom for any means of escape.

The room was small, just big enough to accommodate a toilet and small sink. There was only the one door, no windows, not even so much as a large vent that she could try to shimmy through.

Elisa struggled to get her clothing back into place, cleaning up the best she could and ran cold water over her injured wrists. She washed her hands, careful to clean the cuts, and scooped up some water in her hands to drink.

It had puzzled her as to why Jon had completely cut her free, but it made sense now that she had seen that there was no where to go.

There was nothing to do, except go along with him, and hope that there would be another, better chance later. Elisa took a handful of paper towels, and wrapped them around her wrists, using the cuffs on her jacket to hold them in place. She treated her ankles to the same treatment, using the cuffs of her socks to hold the improvised bandages.

Jon knocked on the door impatiently.

Elisa sighed, and tried to mentally prepare for whatever Jon could possibly dish out. She just had to last a little while longer. Surely the clan would be looking for her...

She slowly opened the door.

The moment that the door was open wide enough, Jon reached through and pressed an air injector to her arm.

Within seconds, the world once more went suddenly and completely black.

The castle was in chaos. The sun had set an hour ago, and Matt was there to meet the clan when it did. He hated sharing the news that Elisa was missing and that they had no leads as to where she was.

They  _ did _ know who took her, but no clue as to where to even begin looking.

All they could do was wait. Run their patrols, and wait for news.

Goliath went into a rage, and no one could talk sense into him. He loudly cursed the fact that he hadn't been with her, watching over her. He roared off into the night, intent on looking for her. Brooklyn, the clan's second in command, followed him with a communicator in case there was news.

Hudson and Broadway decided to stop at Elisa's apartment, in case she had gotten home somehow and was hurt. After all, it had happened before…

As an added benefit, they took Bronx with them as a tracker.

The night before, when Matt had come to in the back of an ambulance about an hour after being hit with that dart, he had insisted on going back to the scene to look for his partner.

In the space of an hour, the scene was once again swarming with police. They had combed the area, but had found no sign that she had been there, except for the indentations in the soft, muddy ground from her body where she had fallen. An APB had gone out for Elisa, and every officer was out in force on foot, bike and car.

Ever since the "leak" a week ago, when her picture and personal information had gotten out from her personnel files within the NYPD, Officers had closed ranks. Someone had spread info about one of their own, and they were determined to prove that it was a fluke that such a thing had happened in the first place.

They were looking out for someone who had been betrayed from within their ranks.

Matt had spent the day at the precinct… granted, a lot of it had been sleeping off the tranquilizer cocktail under Doc's supervision, but he was back on the streets trying to get information as soon as he was able.

He had already made the rounds to all of his known snitches, with no luck. He had even sucked it up and called his former partner in the FBI with the ties to the Illuminati, but that had been a dead end as well.

Just before sunset, he realized that he would need help, and made his way to the Aerie building.

The Xanatos' were already calling all of their contacts, both the legal and the not-so-legal ones with no answers.

It was as if Elisa had just… dropped off of the face of the planet.

Lexington was manning the communicators with Angela helping to keep track of where everyone was and where they had been.

It was a waiting game, and none of the players seemed to know the rules...

Elisa woke to a tightness around her midsection and an odd, almost weightless feeling. She was willing to chalk it up to the drugs, until she opened her eyes.

She was tied again, the rope wound around and around her midsection, pinning her arms to her sides and her feet dangling inches above the ground. Looking around, she gave a start to realize that she was back at the construction site where Jon had abducted her. She turned her head to look as far straight up that she could, and could see one of the towering construction cranes that she had seen the night before.

"Welcome back, detective," Jon said.

Elisa realized that the sun must have just set. The sky still held a hint of daylight, even as the shadows began to elongate and darkness started creeping over the city.

Jon reached forward, and placed something gently around her neck. Elisa looked down at the object that now dangled just below her chin, and she gave a start to realize that it was her communicator.

"I thought you might want this back," Jon said with a smirk. "I wouldn't want you to be without the aid of your  _ friends _ " he snarled.

"What do you want?" Elisa asked.

"I want them dead," he spat out, his calm demeanor fracturing. "I want to wipe the planet of them and their ilk."

"Why?"

"They are demons, and must be destroyed. They have haunted my family for generations. One of them, the red haired demon, killed my father. It is because of them that my sister must endure years in prison, and my elder brother as well."

"You and your siblings are responsible for your own actions," Elisa said. "You can't blame the gargoyles for what you all chose to do on your own."

"As you chose to forsake your own species by befriending them?"

"You are certifiably insane."

"You may believe so, if that is your wish."

Elisa laughed bitterly. "You really don't want to know what I wish when it comes to you right this moment."

Jon slapped her, sending her into a nausea inducing spin. "I don't know what my brother thought he saw in you. I urged him to not get involved with anyone during a hunt, but he didn't listen. Look where it got him!" He took hold of her shoulders, stopping her spin and shook her in his anger. "Because of you, he decided to try to befriend the beasts, to call off the hunt. He threw himself in front of the monster leader when I tried to shoot him, and all because of you. He has spent the remainder of our family's money on you as if you were no more than a common whore! Because of you, my sister will spend  _ years _ in prison, and for what reason? Because we were trying to wipe these abominations from the face of the Earth." Elisa's face throbbed. She raised her head defiantly, so that she could actually see the expression on Jon's face. Even though she fought it, a shiver went down her spine at what she saw there. "You think it is only  _ your _ life on the line here if you don't cooperate? I want to make you  _ pay _ for what you have done, and part of that is keeping you alive if possible. I want to see your face when I destroy  _ your _ family like you did mine. First, I go after your freak of a brother, down in those filthy tunnels. Then your sister, the cute little Anthropology student in Arizona. Then your parents, in their cozy little home. If you die here and now, however...Well, I will still go "visit" your family , I just won't have the pleasure of seeing your expression, and you won't have the chance to try to save them." He shrugged.

Suddenly, his facade of calm was once more put into place. Hell, he almost looked friendly, if not for the insanity that was shining in his eyes. "Right now, however, I don't think you are in the position to be saying anything about me, my family or your opinions of my mental state. Now." He stopped the communicator from spinning where it hung from her neck, "I want you to call for help."

"Go to hell," Elisa spat out.

"I had a feeling that you might say so", Jon said, his voice mimicking an innocence that Elisa knew to be a lie. He reached out and hit the small button on the back of the small round device. "So I will take the liberty of turning it on for you."

Elisa stopped talking.

"Oh, come now," Jon said. "Do you honestly think that the Gargoyles are not tracking your signal, even now? Is that not how you managed to find my family when we were in the airship? They will be able to monitor every word that we say, and must surely be looking for you by now. Wouldn't it be beneficial for you to just let them know where you are?"

Elisa didn't say a word, even though she knew it was probably true. The clan might be in the air, looking for her. What if they didn't find her? What if they did...

Jon heaved a sigh. "So be it. But if you ever want to see your friends, or at least to say your goodbyes, I would do it now."

John turned to walk away, entering the access elevator that would take him to the top of the structure.

Elisa began struggling anew. She had an idea of what he was about to do, and if she were able to get loose on her own, she wanted it to be nearer to the ground.

A few minutes later, though it felt like years, she felt herself being lifted.

"Guys," Elisa said into the communicator, "If you can hear me, I'm at the construction site where I was taken from last night. Matt can tell you where to find me, if you don't already know where it is." Elisa took a steadying breath, "Be careful, the Hunter is here, and he's waiting for you."

She realized that while she had her communicator, the receiver had been deactivated, so she had no idea if anyone was talking to her, let alone if anyone had heard her.

"Oh, god," She breathed. She was already several stories up, and the crane was still pulling her upward. "Guys, I hope you're hearing this, because my earpiece is missing. If you can hear me," Elisa took a breath, "Please, please be careful."

Elisa clamped her mouth shut. The crane was moving now, the wind making Elisa swing from side to side. Elisa felt a jolt when she realized that she was not  _ just _ rising  _ up _ , but to the side as well.

He was moving her out above the rocky shore of the Hudson River.

Elisa whimpered and closed her eyes. She took a few deep breaths to calm herself, and had to give herself a firm shake. She could not freak out now. She would  _ not _ lose the tenuous hold that she had on her control.

She was so high now, that struggling and trying to get loose was pointless. Even if she succeeded in getting loose, there was no possible way that she would survive this drop.

She had already survived too much to tempt fate now.

Suddenly, her rise halted as the crane stopped with a jerk.

All she could do was wait…


	23. Chapter 23

Lexington had been monitoring the clan's progress when he suddenly heard Elisa's voice, and listened to it in shock. He had instinctively tried to respond, but received no answer. Elisa confirmed that she couldn't hear any replies that were made.

He sprung into action. He got on the main communicator radio, and opened it up to all available receivers, so he only had to relay the information once.

"Guys, Elisa's communicator just came online," He said. "She said that she is at the construction site where she was kidnapped."

"Got ya, Lex," Brooklyn's voice shot back. "Goliath and I are turning around and heading there now."

"Aye, lad," Hudson replied as well. "We will be there soon as well."

"Elisa said something about a Hunter being there, but she can't hear our replies, so I don't know any more than that," Lexington admitted. "I am leaving the com channels open. Angela and I will leave the castle in a minute."

"I will be right behind you," Xanatos' voice came over the line.

Lexington left all of the channels open so that they would all be able to hear each other and Elisa as well. He grabbed the last available communication device, and he dashed out to the balcony to meet with Angela.

"Well, detective," Jon's voice called out to her from where he stood at the controls. "It appears that all of the monsters are coming to save you."

Elisa opened her eyes, and scanned the skyline. She spotted a few low-flying dots on the horizon, but they were still too far away to know who they were.

"Guys," Elisa whispered into the communicator, "I see you, and so does he. Keep as covered as you can."

The dots dipped low, hiding amongst the shadows and darkened buildings.

Jon threw her a look. "Now, now, detective," he scolded. "I can't have you ruining all of my fun." He drew his laser weapon, and with an amazingly accurate shot at the dangling communicator piece, the small bit of technology shattered.

Elisa cried out in surprise.

He smiled. "There, that should take care of that." He kept the weapon drawn, held in his right hand, as his left rested on the control panel. A loud humming signaled that he had activated the panel.

"Oh, God," Elisa whispered. She looked below, at the black expanse of the river below.

There was a small jerk, and in the space of a fraction of a second, she was suddenly a foot closer to the water. The action caused the pressure of her arms bound to her side to feel as if they were trying to crush her own ribs. Her neck, already sore from her position of hanging in the air, protested as the stiff muscles were suddenly forced into action to keep her head on.

Elisa clamped her mouth shut.

"Oh, come now, detective," Jon taunted. "Don't disappoint me. You're dangling above the ground, over a rocky shore, cold water and your fate is in my hands." He dropped her another few feet. "Scream. Cry. Call for help."

Elisa shook her head. She was getting dizzy from the swaying and spinning from the dropping, and was irrationally terrified that she was going to throw up what little contents her stomach may still have in it.

Whoosh.  **_That one was longer_ ** , Elisa thought. How much farther had she dropped? Two feet? Three? Five?

"Now, now, detective, let them know where you are or I will release you another five feet."

Elisa's spinning was slowing, and as her sight went past the construction area, she caught sight of two familiar forms darting toward the crane's ladder on the ground. Lexington and Bronx were small enough, and darkly colored enough to make it to the crane unseen.

Elisa wanted to smile. The clan had gotten her warning, and were splitting up to flank him.

"Come now, monster!" Jon ranted from his perch. "Come and save the lady! Come and face me!"

Whoosh.

Another few feet lost. Elisa's head was reeling.

"Goliath," Jon taunted. "Come and save her, if you can."

Whoosh.

Elisa jerked to a stop,and involuntarily cried out as the pain in her neck and back increased.

There was a familiar roar from close by. Goliath was pissed…

The sound of the gargoyles' wings slicing through the air met Elisa's ears moments before Jon was being bombarded.

Elisa was low enough that she couldn't keep track of the fight. The constant drops in height with the jarring stops had done a number on her, and she couldn't crane her head that far around. All she could go on was the sounds. Once the fighting sounded as if it had started in earnest, she began struggling with her bonds once more.

"Elisa," Lexington called out. "Hold on."

"Lex, " Elisa breathed.

The smallest of the gargoyle clan swooped in, grabbing a hold of the rope above her. He held on with his legs and tail, flipping to hang upside down.

"I'm going to untie you," He said. "Then I can help you climb up the rope."

"O.K.," Elisa said. "Please, hurry."

Lexington made quick work of the knots, grabbing Elisa around her waist as the last loop loosened. He pulled himself upright, shifting Elisa around so that she could hold on to his neck.

Hand over hand, Lex made quick work of the climb, and was soon helping her onto the arm of the crane. Just as Elisa made it to the top of the crane, Lexington pushed off, making a wide, gliding loop around the construction site before beginning the climb back to the crane.

Goliath let out a roar of rage that Elisa swore she could feel in the vibrations of the steel she was standing on. She wished she could let the gargoyles know that she was alright, but didn't want to call Jon's attention to her precarious situation.

Elisa wasn't out of the woods yet, she knew. She still had to navigate the criss-crossing steel beams that made up the working arm. Between the beams there was a sheer drop to the ground below, and Elisa didn't want to fall now.

She picked her way closer to the sound of the fighting, careful to place one foot before moving the other. She could see Jon and Goliath struggling now, both trying to gain control of the laser weapon.

Jon gained control for one precious moment, took aim with the laser weapon and fired. The crane's control panel exploded into a shower of sparks.

The beams that Elisa stood on began an intense, teeth rattling vibration. She fell to her hands and knees, eyes widening as she watched the steel chains rumble by her as they were released from their restraints.

The last link whipped by her, coming inches from striking her hands with a bone-crushing force and sending sparks up from where it was hitting the steel beams.

Seconds later, she heard a tremendous splash as the chain hit the water. Elisa watched as Angela and Broadway took off, dodging laser shots as they dove toward the river.

Elisa looked up and realized that only Lexington knew that she was free from the chain, and he was busy trying to climb back up to the fight to help the others.

Jon was surrounded now on all sides. Goliath was bearing down on him from the front, all seven and a half feet of glowing eyed rage. Hudson and Brooklyn flanked him on the sides.

Jon's back was unguarded, the only thing behind him was the crane arm... And unknown to those locked in the struggle,his back was to Elisa.

Jon still had control of the laser weapon, and had it aimed at Goliath. Elisa had to get him to aim it somewhere else, so that the clan could get him.

Elisa took a deep breath and got unsteadily to her feet.

"Hey, Jon," Elisa called out as loudly as she could. "Did ya' miss me?"

Jon spun around, his eyes wide in disbelief.

The Gargoyles rushed forward, grabbing him from all sides, but he managed to get one more shot off.

Elisa lost her balance as the shot whizzed by her head, and her unstable footing failed her. She slipped through one of the gaps of the beams.

Before she could draw a breath to scream, she came to an abrupt halt. Cold metal gripped her falling form, even as she was slowly being lowered to the ground.

"Need help, detective?"

"Xanatos," Elisa sighed. "I never thought I would see the day when I was so thankful for you showing up like this."

"Aw, shucks," Xanatos said, and Elisa could almost  _ hear _ the smirk on his face, even though it was covered by his goliath-styled helmet of the steel suit he wore. "Don't gush so much, you'll make me blush."

"Just get me to the ground, and help the clan." Elisa said, urgently.

Xanatos deposited her on the ground, and looked up. "I don't believe that will be necessary."

Elisa followed his gaze, and found the clan descending. Jon was bound, wrapped in a large piece of steel, and being carried down between Brooklyn and Hudson.

Goliath was the first to the ground, and rushed forward to take Elisa in his arms. He wrapped his wings around her, giving her the sense of privacy, as she threw her arms around his waist.

Elisa finally let all of her fear and anger out, letting herself give in to the tears that had been building. There, in the safety of his arms, she finally let go.

Goliath stood there, holding her. Three times in a matter of weeks, he had almost lost her. Twice because of those damn Hunters. He rested his cheek against the top of her head, offering him what little comfort that he could.

"I… I…" Elisa tried to speak coherently, hiccupping and gasping through her sobbing. "N… need." She gave up trying to make a full sentence. "Broadway and… and Angela."

"Lexington went to get them," Brooklyn said softly. He laid a hand on Goliath's shoulder. "The police are coming, Goliath."

"You need to go," Elisa said, frantically wiping at her face, straightening up and pushing against Goliath's chest. "You can't be here."

"Elisa, I…" Goliath started.

Elisa put her hand over his mouth. "At least hide. I will tell everyone that I will grab a ride home from Matt, and hang back until everyone else is gone. But you need to go."

Elisa looked to Xanatos. "Can you stay? I need some explanation as to why he's wrapped in steel, and how I'm safe. You may as well get the credit. It might even improve your reputation."

"It certainly couldn't hurt," Xanatos shrugged.

"Go," Elisa urged the clan one more time.

Goliath lowered his head, and gave her a quick kiss.

The clan members scattered, a few climbing the steel beams to hide amongst the skeleton form of the building. Goliath and a few of the others chose to stay on the ground, hiding amongst the piles of unused building materials.

Red and blue lights broke into the dark of the night, the sirens shattering the quiet. Matt's car was in the lead, his car almost going airborne as he drove over the rough ground.

Xanatos reached down, and with one steel taloned gloved hand, he hoisted the Hunter to his feet.

"I think it's time," Xanatos said, keeping a firm grip on him, "For a family reunion."

"Hell no," Elisa said. "No way do I want him in the same place as his siblings."

"Hmm. True," Xanatos said, thoughtfully.

"And they need to strip him from that armor as soon as they can," Elisa said tiredly, "Who knows what fun little surprises and gadgets he has hidden in there."

Matt's car ground to a halt, sending up a cloud of dirt and dust. He flung open his car door, as Captain Maria Chavez exited the passenger side. Both hesitated a step and stared disbelieving at Elisa and Xanatos.

"I'm not even going to ask," Matt said, hurrying forward and removing his handcuffs from their holder on his belt. "Not right now, anyway."

Elisa spoke just loud enough for both Matt and Maria to hear. "The clan is here. They're spread out and hiding, but if you can help me to keep the rest of the officers back for a bit, I would appreciate the help."

"You got it," Maria said. Turning, she walked with Elisa back to the gathering group of officers.

More cars entered the site, and soon the area was filling up with police. Elisa and Maria walked towards them, trying to keep the officers from venturing too far into the site.

"Hey, Maza," Officer Morgan called out as he got out of his cruiser. "You o.k., or should I call for the medics?"

"I'm fine, Morgan."

"You really should see the Medics, and have them check you out," Maria said.

"I will." Elisa promised. "Later."

Maria nodded. "I need a note from the doctor, releasing you to work."

Elisa sighed. "Do you need a note from my parents, too?"

"Don't tempt me," Maria warned.

"Maria," Elisa spoke fast now, trying to get her thoughts and memories out before they were in the middle of the crowd. "Jon made threats against my family. I am pretty sure he couldn't have gotten to Arizona and done anything to Beth, but he could have had access to Derek and my parents."

"I'll take care of it," Maria assured her. "You just worry about you right now."

Raising her voice, Maria addressed the other officers. "I need officers to run tape around the  _ outside _ of the construction fence. This whole place is a crime scene. I also need a team of officers to go to the home of former chief Maza's house. Let them know that their daughter is alive and will contact them soon. Also, the perp made threats to the welfare of the Maza family, so take a K-9 unit and make sure that the home is safe."

As she spoke, the officers scattered to do her bidding.

There was the whine and groan of protesting steel from behind her.

"What was… Is that?" A nearby officer, Thompson, asked in surprised. She was pointing towards where Xanatos was in his steel clan suit.

"Yeah, it is," Elisa didn't bother to try turning her head to look behind her before confirming his unasked question. "Thank God for eccentric rich guys with a gargoyle complex, huh?"

"Uh, yeah," Thompson said. "He can really bend steel like that?"

"I guess so," Elisa said. "Makes you glad that he's on our side now, huh?"

'Oh, yeah," He said. Looking back at Elisa, he eyed her suspiciously. "You sure you're alright?"

"I'm sure," She said.

Thompson laughed, slapping her shoulder affectionately. "Glad to have you back safe, Maza."

"Thanks, Thompson," Elisa said breathlessly. Holy hell, that had hurt. Maybe she  _ did _ need to see a doctor.

Again.

Damn it.

"Thompson," Maria called out. "I need you to contact the construction company and let them know that they won't be able to work at this site for at least 24 hours. We caught the man responsible, but we will need to go over the scene tomorrow in the daylight for evidence."

"On it, boss," Thompson tipped his hat to her, and headed back to his cruiser.

Jon was escorted to a cruiser. He was silent, but his hate-filled gaze never left Elisa.

"Hey, Captain?" Elisa called out, her eyes never leaving Jason's.

"Yeah?"

"One more thing," Elisa said. "Can you make sure that he doesn't end up in the same building as his brother, Jason Canmore, or his sister, Robyn? That would just be a recipe for disaster."

Maria nodded. "I'll get on it for you."

"Thanks."

Elisa made her way through the storm of officers, all wanting to stop and express how glad they were that she had been found safe. The word "alive" never left anyone's lips, but she could see it on their faces.

Maria got to work, scrambling the officers in various directions so that no one got too close to the inside of the construction. Those that she couldn't give an assignment right that moment, were sent back out on their patrols.

With Jon in custody, the officers started clearing out. Finally, it was just Xanatos, Elisa, Maria and Matt left.

"The construction company is not going to be happy about the damage to their site." Matt observed.

"Tell me about it," Elisa said wearily. "was someone able to contact them?"

"Had to leave a voicemail on their business line," Matt said.

"They're going to have a really crappy Monday." Elisa said.

"It could have been worse," Xanatos said.

Elisa nodded, wincing openly now with the motion. She brought her hands up, using them like a neck brace.

"Shall I call ahead and let Dr. James know that his services will be needed?" Xanatos asked.

"Yeah," Elisa said with a sigh.

"I will see you back at the castle, then." With that, he fired up his boosters with a roar, and he took to the air.

"Do you need a ride back to the Aerie Building?" Matt asked.

"I shall make sure that she gets there," Goliath said, emerging from the shadows.

Maria smiled. "I should have known that you would be here, Goliath." She looked at Elisa. "I'll stop in and check on you as soon as I'm off work."

"Thanks, Matt. Maria," Elisa said.

"Hey," Matt gave her shoulder a gentle pat. "You just take care of you, huh?"

"And you don't worry about me," Elisa insisted. "You go, take Pamela out to breakfast for a date, and get some rest yourself."

"You got it." Matt got back in his car, and started the engine with a quiet roar.

"Take care of our girl," Maria ordered Goliath as she got in the car with Matt.

Goliath stepped forward and took her gently in his arms. "Shall we return to the castle?"

"Yes, please," Elisa said. "Did you find Broadway and Angela? I'd hate to think of them still searching the river."

"They are safe and well. The rest of the clan are already on their way back to the castle as we speak."

"Let's get going, then," Elisa said. She held tight to his neck, laid her head against his chest. He wrapped an arm around her waist, cradling her to him as gently as he could, as he climbed the steel beams until he was high enough to catch an updraft.


	24. Chapter 24

"We have to stop meeting like this," Dr James said.

"I know," Elisa said, tiredly. She ran her fingers around the neck of the hard plastic immobilizing collar that the doctor had insisted on when he found out the she had a possible neck injury. "Hazard of the job."

"Well, I have good news and bad news for you," the doctor said. "Which would you like first?"

"The bad, I guess," Elisa encouraged.

"Alright _.  _ You have a lot of bruising in your midsection and upper arms, a case of whiplash, and some pretty nasty looking lacerations on your wrists." He took a pen out of his pocket, and made some notes in her chart. "Fortunately, the cuts on your wrists aren't deep enough to require stitches, but all I can do is wrap them. Your ribs aren't broken or cracked, so even wrapping them wouldn't be much help, but they're going to hurt like hell for a while. For the whiplash, I can give you a softer brace for your neck."

"Tell me again what the good news is?" Elisa said.

Dr. James grinned. "The good news is that I'm going to be giving you a few days worth of some really good pain medication."

"Thank you," Elisa said, gratefully.

"Let me go get that neck brace, and I can grab an assistant to help bind your wrists. I think it goes without saying that you won't be able to work for at least a week. After that, you can return to  _ light  _ duty," he threw her a stern look, "and by that, I mean  _ desk _ duty, for at least another week. You try going back to regular duty too quickly, and you will really hate life."

Elisa groaned. "Doc, please say it isn't so."

"Sorry," Dr. James said. "But it is doctor's orders. Unless you agree, I won't even release you to work until you're fully healed."

"I promise," Elisa said.

Dr. James nodded. "Alright." He reached in his pocket and pulled out a blister pack containing two white pills. "Here is your first dose of pain medication. I have my assistant going to get the rest of your prescription filled for you right now. While we give those a few minutes to get working, I am going to go round up the brace and enough gauze for wrapping your wrists."

Elisa gratefully took the medication and sat patiently waiting for the Doctor to return.

The brace replaced, and one wrist was completed when Elisa felt the meds kick in.

"Wow, doc," Elisa said, blearily.

"Better living through chemistry, huh?"

"Oh, these are great," Elisa said, smiling.

"Hang in there, kiddo. We're almost done here."

Dr. James led Elisa up to the castle, because she insisted that she needed to tell the Gargoyles goodnight.

Goliath met them in the great hall, and took Elisa off of his hands from there.

He took her to the Library, her favorite room in the castle, and sat with her. They talked for a few hours, Elisa occasionally making no sense at all, but Goliath simply sat and listened.

The younger clan members took occasional glances in at the two of them, as if to assure themselves that everything was fine.

The clan had fielded calls from Elisa's parents, Derek and Captain Chavez. The concerned friends and family members had all threatened to come down to the castle themselves, but the clan had convinced them all to give Elisa until morning. None of them had liked it, and the clan was still half expecting her parents to show up anyway.

After all, Derek had.

He had come flying into the courtyard, too anxious to wait. Brooklyn had taken him to the door of the library and opened the door a crack.

Goliath was kneeling in front of Elisa, listening intently as Elisa spoke of the events of her captivity for the first time. As they watched, Goliath reached forward and ran a comforting hand across her forehead, tucking her hair behind her ear.

Derek took a step back from the door, and Brooklyn closed it, giving the couple back their complete privacy.

"What happened, Brooklyn?"

"The last Hunter, Jon, drugged her, held her captive during the day and used her as bait to get to us tonight."

"He  _ was _ the last, though, right? The last Hunter?" Derek asked.

"Yeah," Brooklyn said. "He was the last."

"Well, at least it's over," Derek said. "It's been a rough couple of weeks. It's about time for things to settle down for a while."

"The doc told Elisa that she can't go to work for a week. Desk duty after that for a while."

Derek smirked. "I know my sister. We'll see how long that stands. She'll beg, bribe and complain to the doctor until he signs the orders to let her return."

Brooklyn shrugged. "She can try." He smirked, "But now that the doctor also has ties to the clan, I think she'll have to contend with all of us enforcing the doctor's orders, too. Especially Goliath."

"Hey," Derek said, all seriousness now. "Goliath. He, uh, really loves my sister, doesn't he?"

"Yeah," Brooklyn smiled. "He does. I haven't seen him this happy in a long time. Even when he was with Demona in Scotland, he didn't seem as happy."

"It hasn't been easy for them."

"Yeah," Brooklyn agreed. "Goliath and Elisa have been plagued with constant threats, attacks, and the shadow of death hanging over their heads throughout their entire relationship. They deserve so much better." Brooklyn muttered.

Derek put a hand on Brooklyn's shoulder. He had seen Brooklyn before and after he had become the reluctant clan leader during the time that Elisa and Goliath had disappeared on their "Avalon Tour". He had matured a great deal in a short time, but he was still, in essence, a teenager.

Teenagers were moody, and needed outlets for their frustrations.

Derek knew just the thing.

"Brooklyn," He said, tucking the Gargoyle under his arm. "How do you feel about helping Elisa move?"

Elisa woke up in a spare room within Castle Wyvern.

Again.

It was late afternoon, and she had already had a hell of a day. She had endured worried visits from her parents, her brother, Matt, Captain Chavez and the whole Gargoyle clan.

Elisa took one bleary look at the pill bottle on her bedside table. She picked it up and hurled it against the wall. She rarely took anything stronger than Tylenol, because she hated feeling like she was drugged and the grogginess that followed.

Especially after recent events.

She sat up, mindful of her neck. Gingerly, she did a body evaluation, and while she was stiff and sore, it was in no way harsh enough to make her go for the heavy drugs.

There was a knock at her door. "Come in," she called.

"Oh, good. You're awake," Fox said. She pushed inside, a meal tray in her hands. "I thought you might be hungry by now."

"Fox, you are my hero at this moment."

She smiled. "That's what they all say."

"No, seriously," Elisa said. "Thank you, both you and David, for all the help."

"Well," Fox seemed at a loss for words. "You're welcome. Can I help you with anything else?"

Elisa went to shake her head and regretted it instantly. "No, thank you. I just need to eat this  _ fantastic _ smelling food, then go to my apartment. I need a shower, a change of clothes and to start packing. If I have to be out of work for another week, I can at least get the process started."

"That's right," Fox said. "Detective Bluestone told us about what Jason Canmore had done for you. It was an amazingly generous thing, buying you the new condo."

"Yeah," Elisa said. "I'm still wondering when the other shoe will drop."

Fox looked puzzled. "Why do you say that?"

"That's just how my life has gone recently. For every good thing, something equally as nasty creeps up on me."

Fox grimaced. "I guess I can understand that. Well," She said, all business once more. "being that Goliath would have my head if I even  _ thought _ of letting you go and pack your place when you are supposed to be taking it easy, especially with rib and neck injuries," Fox said, giving Elisa a stern, motherly look. "But I can help ease your mind over a few of those things."

Elisa blinked at her.

"Brooklyn, Angela and your brother went to your apartment last night. They brought back a few changes of clothes, because they weren't sure how you would be feeling today." She walked over to the large wooden wardrobe in the corner. She opened the doors to show Elisa that a good portion of her wardrobe was inside. "I have to ask… Why so many black shirts and blue jeans?"

"I hate shopping," Elisa said. "When I find something I like that fits, I buy in bulk so I don't have to worry about it for a while. Plus," she pointed out, "Blue jeans go with everything."

Fox cringed. Her inner fashionista was cringing, crying out for her to help the poor detective.

**_Some other time_ ** , she told herself.

"Well," she said instead, gesturing to the door opposite the one she'd entered the room through. "The bathroom is right through there when you are ready. If you need anything, just hit nine on the telephone on the wall."

"Thanks," Elisa said.

Fox nodded to her and left so that Elisa could eat and get cleaned up.

Elisa was waiting for Goliath when he woke that night.

The Gargoyles burst from their stone sleep with their usual roar. Almost immediately, the fearsome foursome of Brooklyn, Broadway, Lexington and Angela launched into the sky.

Elisa watched, puzzled at what they could be up to.

"Elisa," Goliath said, surprised that she was there. "Are you well?"

"I'm fine," Elisa hurried to assure him. "I promise. I just took so long to wake up and feel up doing anything, thanks to those pills, that I never actually left. I didn't want to miss you waking up, and I definitely didn't want you worrying about me if I weren't here."

"It has been a trial for you," Goliath said, frowning. He went down on one knee, so that he could meet Elisa's eyes without her having to move her injured neck.

"Hey," Elisa said softly. She put her hand on his chest, "It's been crazy lately, I'll give you that. But the Hunters are all under lock and key, so they are out of the picture for a while."

Goliath wrapped her in his arms, hugging her close. "If something had happened to you…"

Elisa put her hand over his lips. "Nothing happened that can't be fixed."

Goliath took gentle hold of one of her wrists and inspected the bandage.

Elisa reclaimed her hand and tugged the arm of her jacket down to cover the bandage.

Goliath sighed. Elisa was not one to let herself be coddled. But maybe he could ease her mind about something that she had been worried about.

"Would you like to get out of the castle for a while?" He asked her.

"Yes," Elisa said, grateful. "I'm going a little stir crazy."

Goliath smiled, and picked her up. "Let us see what we can do about that."

Goliath took her on a gentle glide over Manhattan. From one side of the island to the other, before he turned south past Central Park.

It took a moment before Elisa realized where they were heading. She smiled at Goliath, "Matt told you?"

"Yes," Goliath said, happy to see her smiling. "The clan has been busy since last night."

"Busy doing what?" Elisa asked.

Goliath touched down on the large rooftop patio outside of her new apartment. He gestured to her sliding doors, and she found them open.

Puzzled, she walked towards it, and found Angela arranging her living room furniture.

"Oh, wow," Elisa breathed. "You guys have been at this for a while."

Angela smiled. "Yes, but it really is not a problem Elisa. The boys are taking turns bringing the big furniture over. I packed your bedroom items, and they are ready to be unpacked."

Elisa sat abruptly on her sofa, a little dazed. "Thank you."

Angela sat next to Elisa. "Broadway is at your old apartment, packing your kitchen, and you know that he will do a great job with that."

"Not a doubt in my mind," Elisa said with a smile.

"Your new apartment came with all new appliances, so we didn't bother with your old ones."

"Angela," Elisa said, "Thank you." She hugged the female gargoyle, and after a slight hesitation, Angela hugged her back.

"You are very welcome," she said.

"If you will be fine here," Goliath said, "I will go help the young ones bring more of your things here."

"I'm fine, Big Guy," Elisa assured him.

Angela hopped to her feet. "You can show me where you would like your things, and I will unpack them for you."

Elisa laughed, feeling better at the thought of a new place all her own. "Let's go."


	25. Epilogue

Epilogue

Hours later, Elisa's old apartment had been emptied and transferred to her new place. While there were still some boxes laying around, needing to be unpacked, Elisa was more than happy to let that wait for another day.

Most of the clan headed back to the castle for the day, leaving Elisa and Goliath alone. Sunrise was rapidly approaching, and Goliath had offered to remain with her for the day.

Elisa agreed. Together they waited on her rooftop balcony for the sun to rise. Goliath knelt to one side of her sliding glass door, preparing for the sunrise.

"Tell me what you are thinking," Goliath urged her.

"I'm thinking about how lucky I am."

Goliath looked puzzled. He had not expected that answer, after all that had happened to her over the past few weeks.

Elisa laughed at his look, and knew what he was thinking. "I am lucky to have such good friends and family. I am lucky to have this great place to live that is so close to where you and the clan live." She gestured to the Aerie Building. It was roughly about half the time and distance than her old apartment. She leaned against him. "I'm lucky that I found you."

"That we found each other," Goliath added.

"That too," Elisa said. "You know, the last time we were together like this, before the sunrise, I never actually said it. Words have a power to them, and it wasn't until I didn't think that I would get the chance to say them to you that I understood just how much. I never said the words before, but I love you, Goliath."

He smiled at her. "As I love you, Elisa."

She leaned forward and gave him a quick kiss, just as the first rays of sunlight touched him, turning his skin to stone for the day. His face frozen in an expression of contentment.

Elisa leaned against his stone form, watching the sun as it rose in the sky and tinted everything with a golden glow.

It was a new day, after all.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Author's Note:  
> Once in a while, a truly unique show comes along that entertains, educates and sucks the viewers in the way that Disney's Gargoyles did. It was the first exposure that I had to legends of old, ancient gods and Shakespeare references in a way that made me want to learn about them without having it shoved down my throat. With lovable characters and a great cast, even as a child I could not wait for the next episode. Above all else, it always had a great story and a moral hidden in the episodes in a way that is truly lacking in today's cartoons.
> 
> Not only did it have a large fan base while it was on the air, but it continues to grow a fan base through it's older fans passing it along to the next generation. I am proud to say that both my boys love the show, and I couldn't be more pleased.
> 
> In 2001, I underwent surgery on my shoulder that kept me sitting at home, in a sling or a brace, for almost a year. Let's just say that I had a lot of time on my hands. It was then that I ran across a Gargoyle's marathon on the Disney Channel, and I once more fell in love with the show. I was inspired to take some of my favorite episodes, and write them from a different point of view. One of my favorite episodes was The Hunter's Moon. I took that episode, and wrote it from Elisa Maza's perspective...and I just kept writing, taking the series in a whole new direction.
> 
> I began writing fanfiction for the Gargoyle's universe under my pen name of Starr Williams on a fan site. If anyone, other than myself, ever actually reads those, please don't judge me by some of those writings...I blame the pain meds I was on for making me think I was funny in some of them. There are a few that are truly cringe-worthy.  
> A few years ago, now a little older and (hopefully) wiser, and got the urge to re-read what I had originally written. There were some good ideas hidden in there, but I had skipped opportunities to go into detail, and saw an option to take some ideas in a whole new direction. Admittedly, I am choosing to skip season 3 of the series, known as "The Goliath Chronicles''. This is a personal choice of mine, and no reflection on that season… I really liked the first episode, "The Journey" and later on, the episode called, "For It May Come True". Unfortunately, I didn't care for most of season 3, so for the purposes of my writing, I chose to ignore it. What is fan fiction for, if not to pick and choose where you start writing, and where you take the story from there?
> 
> Enter NaNoWriMo (National Novel Writing Month). Every November, a challenge is issued to writers to write (or begin writing) a challenge to complete the required 50,000 words in 30 days was too much to resist, and I somehow managed to rewrite the whole thing from scratch, using all new ideas. I hope you all enjoy it!  
> Set in Walt Disney's Gargoyle Universe, The events of the Hunter's Moon is about to shake up the clan and their human friends, leaving all it touches changed. Some for the better, some not so much.


End file.
